white rose
by roxaslover143
Summary: the curse on beast and belle, is not over. a dark evil is rising, thier daughter is in danger. the only one that can save her is the lion. but who is this person? no one knows. a spoiled stranger comes to the castle, new freinds appear, revenge is near.
1. Chapter 1

_Pray to hear the words I tell,_

_and pray to mark them well._

_For I shall foretell your final victory_

_or your enemy's final mastery._

_Behold! I see a delicate white rose;_

_who's beauty will merit all other's woes._

_But like a caged bird, she will remain_

_trapped in her cold, enclosed domain._

_For all of time she'll stay within its concealed walls,_

_until her soul withers, and falls._

_Yes, she shall descend into sinking dejection;_

_forever she shall be surrounded by the depths of seclusion,_

_and here she shall stay._

_Until the hand of the lion shall take her away;_

_Her soul will start to rise, until his masked sins emerge with betrayal and dread, _

_this shall tear her tender heart to shreds._

_And thus my black hearted friend, _

_the time to take your revenge will be at hand._

_But beware the raven's wrath and angel's tears; _

_for if the devil's bird sings, it will also arise all your fears._

_Mark me well this warning I heed,_

_For if the angel's hands stain red_

_the curse and chance shall end,_

_with your death my unfortunate friend. _


	2. Chapter 2

A black crow steadily ascended into the sky with the bright, dawning sun. He soared above the barren, thin forest trees. His obsidian feathers glistened with the faint green and purple colors in the sunlight as he drifted west away from the dark purple mountains in the east.  
>The trees stood like petrified skeletons against a dead, white landscape; they stood there frozen in time, still unmoving in the seizing grasp of winter's chill just waiting for the first warming breath of spring to blow through the icy blanket, and to awake the trees from their deep winter slumber.<br>The crow cawed roughly as small, ice clumps started to form on the edges of his wings and nostrils slowly starting to chill the warm flesh underneath his thick, winter feathers.  
>He continued to soar above the frozen dreamland, ignoring the bits of frost that started to form and cling on his tongue. His small, beady, black eyes looked towards a towering castle; mist covered its long, extended bridge that led to the north side of the vast empty forest. He could see all the pale, rime covered stone reflect on the still frigid river miles below. The castle stood on a lone island, the bridge being the only escape to the outside world.<br>Small strips of ice and frost covered the tips on the tops of the six, blue tinted towers. The crow tilted his wings, causing him to slowly descend around the tallest tower flying over the small, domed, glass covered greenhouse in the center court yard. He flew around once again towards a stone rimmed balcony where a young woman stood. Her silver morning gown sparkled in the sunlight; her light olive skin seemed pale against the white stone and snow. Her amber hair and deep, burnt orange eyes seemed to bring color and life to the dark, dull endless backdrop behind her she looked up into the gray sky as the crow let his hoarse cough echo across the mountains and trees.  
>His beak seemed to lower into a very disappointed frown as the woman looked back into the dark door behind her. Her fingers began to drum impatiently on the railing, her eyes rolled in annoyance accompanied by a deep sigh; she took a deep breath before she slowly drifted away and turned back into dim, tedious room. Her dress mimicked her spirit as it was covered in shadow. She carelessly grabbed a small, golden pin with a small diamonds twisting into the form of a tiny white rose and pinned up the back strands of her high set bun.<br>She quickly pulled on a white, loose working shirt before covering it with a deep maroon dress with two little frills on the shoulders. She pulled back her off set bang as she reached for an old, dirt covered apron hanging next to a steel imbedded, wooden door.  
>Even though it looked as heavy as two elephants the door did not make so much as a small groan or creak as she pushed it open. Her footsteps did not echo against the cold walls as she walked down the rug covered stone spiral. She casually let her fingers run along the stone brinks, counting them off in her mind. <p>

"_24, 25, 26, 27…"_

She kept on counting as she passed every deep wedged grain, even though she knew there were exactly one-hundred and eight grooves when she reached the bottom. And forty-two grooves down the second hall until she would turn left, only to have forty- five more on each set of stairs leading down to the main floor. But that's not where she really was, she imagined herself far from this stony, confined prison and out into a different world.  
>In this world she could go anywhere she could imagine, she traveled to far off, colorful places full of life and people; all kinds people with all sorts of food, clothes, music, dancing, and everything else that she had dreamed of, it was a world that was her own. It was her only way, her only exit to escape from her concealed life.<br>Her echoing steps ended as she reached the elegant blood red carpet that stretched along the center of the hall. Magnificent knight armor seemed to guard her every step as she walked along, exquisite and rare painting aligned the walls and ceiling. She had reached past the next eighty-five grooves before she turned right, she quickly stopped as she saw a man waiting for her. She let her eyes wander to the celling and paintings before going on.  
>She only sighed as she reached a thin, tall, roguishly handsome man. His mile only made his lengthy, waxy nose look even longer. But even though his lanky face and ears didn't match his greased back hair and pony tail, his green eyes were full of French mischief and warm laughter. He wore an expensive dark golden javin with long sleeves, covered by a yellow, black buttoned vest. He looked like a thin, candlewax candle right down to his thin face right down to his brown turn shoes. He started to show off his new white cuffs, his thin smile turning into a wide grin.<p>

"Good morning princess." He beamed.

"Lumier." She respired.

He did a little prance before once again showing off his cuffs.

"Princess did u notice my-"

But she just did a quick curtsy before hurrying down the corridor. His green eyes twinkled with mischief; he casually strolled to catch up with her, not knowing her cheeks began to become red as she briskly stopped, the rolled her eyes as he politely bowed behind her. Her cheeks tightened as she calmly relaxed her burning heart. After all, it wasn't Lumier's fault that he was supposed to watch her every day, every hour, and every minute of her enclosed life. Her parents didn't want her to wander anywhere because of this so called curse.  
>It's not that she didn't believe the curse was real; after all she had lived for centuries along with everyone else in the castle without being able to die. Here she remained trapped, she had never seen anything of the outside world except for those that came to the castle as part of what they called a vacation, these people brought in the money ever sense her parents had started their small, private business. But they also had never been to the outside world, everything was provided when the wood cutter had appeared, he gave them the opportunity to keep their castle, and thus imprison their only, fragile daughter while he was hired into their servant's service as the woodsman and huntsmen.<br>She delicately turned back to Lumier. He started to bow again but her silky, cool voice stopped him as he reached his waist.

"Lumier?"  
>"Yes princess?"<br>Her voice started to become snappy, "just because my mother has ordered you to be my shadow every waking moment doesn't mean you have to be here every waking moment."

Lumier just watched as she briskly curtsied and left him alone in the corridor. She continued to count the rest of the grooves in the wall until she made a final right turn and into a short hall with an extravagant door leading to the center courtyard.  
>The door was twice as tall as her; it was made completely out of iron painted in a sleek metallic sheen. The whole edge of its paragoned top and straight edges was carved and adorned in gorgeously detailed flowers, swans, woodpeckers, blue birds, vines, and a small deer on the left side. All the creatures and plants looked towards its center where eight vines reached and entangled until they formed a giant, sharp pointed rose.<br>She pricked her fingers on the silver handle, the door made a small click as she pulled up on the under handle. The cold hinges loudly creaked as the metal was pushed to the side, scraping against the stone floor until it softly hit the left wall of the courtyard.  
>She carelessly pulled off another, more dirt covered apron off an old, huge, black nail above some white daffodils. She walked along the four long rows of assorted plants, passing dragon lilies, ferns, small trees in huge pots to be planted in the spring. She passed pansies, climbing morning glory, small delicate poppies, lustrous roses, sunflowers, moss, and more small trees.<br>She looked up towards the iridescent glass ceiling. The sky and grey clouds seemed to mesh together, she sighed as the snow started to lightly fall; winter had not yet gave up its chilly war with against incoming spring. A small black dot flashed across the other side, she smiled knowing it was the old crow she had found wounded out in the woods as a child. Unlike her he was allowed to leave this place, over time he had become her dearest friend and her eyes to the outside world.  
>She walked over to the far west side of the domes room. A short, empty, wooden shelf rested alone and separated, standing in a tight dark corner. She gradually pulled it aside, a small strand of light shone through the small crack behind it. The light gradually grew and intensified, until it showed a single, rectangle window. The sun was at the perfect angle beneath the clouds and yet just above the purple hills to let its warm light to shine through, the light coated a small ceramic vase; holding twelve, delicate, pure white roses.<br>They seemed to gleam like the frozen snow against the dull grey enclosure around them. There stems where still bright green like the forest canopy is summer, she tenderly carried the small bush out of the corner, wedging herself between the small gap of the shelf and the fourth table.  
>One by one she transferred the delicate bush into a larger, white glass face filled with dark, brown rich soil. She wiped her hands on her apron before she caressed the soil around the tender roots and main stem. She felt a sharp thorn prick her thumb, but she placidly just bit down on her tongue, still cradling the weak side of the roots into deeper soil.<br>Once again she wiped her dirty hands on her apron, smiling as the roses still stood tall and beautiful. She had cared for this rose bush all winter, cutting, shearing, replanting, anything she could do to prevent it from withering. These roses reminded her a spring and they were her ties to what she hoped would be the final week of winter, for the spring through the fall was her only time to escape her imprisonment, even if it was just out in the nearby forest around her.  
>She carefully picked up the vase and once again started to count all five hundred and twelve steps back to her room in the high tower. She pushed open the door; the crow was sitting on the other side of one of the small three windows leading out to her balcony.<br>Rose walked into her dimly lit room; the candelabra on her dressing table could barely add a spark of life to the otherwise dull, enclosed room. She placed the bouquet of fresh, white on her small nightstand which was also adorned and carved with flowers and birds much like the rest of the castle.  
>She walked out onto her balcony. The crow sat, patiently waiting for her on the stone railing; his small pointy head looked up at her as she spoke.<p>

"Looks like it's going to snow again."

The crow watched her curiously for a moment as though she had piqued his interest; he looked into her face with his beady black eyes that looked like small, black, lake pebbles. He looked up at the grey sky, a small flake landed on the edge of his beak. He gave an acknowledging caw before he flew away without a second thought. Suddenly, there was a sharp rap and the half-open door

"Rose, are you here?"

Rose pushed her hair back with an exasperated sigh and replied,

"I'm on the balcony mamam."

She was soon joined by another beautiful woman. She was very well groomed all across her face, all her auburn hair was perfectly kept in all her braids surrounding her pulled up French bun. Her dress was blue like the deepest ocean; her brown eyes were caring, and warm, but touched with worry as she saw her daughter alone on the balcony.  
>Graciously she walked over to her daughter; her red, glossy lips deepened her kind smile.<br>"Well, I see you were tending the flowers, again," the she said enthusiastically as she pointed to Rose's mud splattered hem.

"I wanted to be done before it got too warm in the greenhouse," she defended in annoyance, "besides I owe Chip a game of chess."

"Well, be sure to get cleaned up first before you come back down." She gently retorted before reaching up to brush of a smudge of dirt from Rose's face.

"I will," rose said and pushed her mother's hand away before she could finish, ignoring her shocked look entirely.  
>After she quickly changed into a clean, dark green dress, she sat at her dressing table and examined her reflection in a large, oval shaped mirror. She picked up a wet rag and scrubbed her light olive skin until it was free of dirt.<p>

"_Perfect."_ she thought exasperatedly to herself. _"This should satisfy mamam."_

She rolled her eyes as she walked out the door and saw her faithful guard dog waiting in the hall before heading for the library in search of Chip; to once again play a game to try and pass the time in her prison.  
>Little did she know that when spring would bring life back to the winter landscape, and that spring's breath would slowly blow into the hotter yet welcomed wind of summer; her life was going to change. Our princess had no idea what mighty, and dangerous changes were coming on the wind, for within six months' time a stranger would come to the forgotten castle, and they would change everything that had untouched and unchanged for the last six hundred and twelve years.<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

Hundreds of cars lined, and packed the city streets. Many of them honked and bleated from the tired, frustrated people inside just trying to get home after the long day's work. Many of them slid like molasses trying to get to the various linking highway, in the distance the now silent Big Ben raised over the small buildings by the cobblestone lined river.  
>The honking and shrilling only increased as a loud, booming, silver Ferrari Enzo raced along the illegal side of highway A4. Even the blacktop gave dust as the car raced off the interstate passing the green billboard which led onto Piccadilly Street, and into more crowded streets of the night city life of London.<br>The Ferrari continued to speed through the noisy chaos. Two huge, boom box speakers boomed with hard rock and heavy metal music making the back wheels of the car vibrate. The city lights flashed against the red racing strips, and sleek silver sheen. As it continued its crazed, sharp turn path deeper into the north section of rich, uptown London, more and more red flashes and police sirens began to chase down the silver road runner.  
>Unaware behind the dark windows and ear deafening music, two young men were laughing at the ridiculously hormonal, mature joke the man in the passenger seat had just slurred. Glancing back, the driver finally noticed the flashing lights marking the vain pursuit behind them, and he jokingly pointed it out to his friend before he could start another vulgar wisecrack. He turned his flushed red face that nearly matched his dark red hair behind his seat, laughing even harder as he pulled out another London Pride from the small, installed cooler between the seats.<p>

"Can you believe 'em, Damn, I mean uh Dan?" he swooned as he took another drink, "the look on their faces ne'er gets old."  
>The driver twisted the wheel again sharply to the right and charged onto Great Mariborough Street. He calmly laid back against the black, silky seat, but not far enough to ruin his short, trimmed, perfectly placed, spiked hair. His smooth cheeks and sharp nose gave his striking blue eyes and rich brown hair the look of a British rock star from any charmed teenager's dream. He smoothly pressed a contact on the blue phone screen called "police HQ". The small ear piece picked up, and he laughed as the woman came on the line.<p>

"Hey Angela, yea it's me. Could ya get your bloody drags off my tail?" the young man in the passenger seat took another drink as the woman said some words. Dan laughed again.

"Remember, Angie, you owe me; you know for that five mil' I lent you last year. Yea, yea ok thanks."  
>The passenger turned again, as the Ferrari bolted again to the left; the police patrol silenced their sirens and gave up their pursuit, "One nice," he mixed up.<br>Dan just smiled at his friend's mistake, as he turned onto Merillway, and pulled to a stop in front of Chinawhite, the second club of the night. Before they exited the car, Joe speedily guzzled his beer and grabbed a fresh one from the cooler.  
>"Isn't this your eighth, Joe?" He pulled down his face mirror and licked his finger to brush off the small trail of dirt on his eyebrow, then straightened his sleek, party jacket and quickly brushed the wrinkles out of his denims before he stepped out onto the ever crowding street.<br>Dan quipped as he through the keys to the valet and walked straight to the front of the line, the passed the bright purple-pink neon letters reading "La Petre" and up to the wild, crazy line plenty full of what Dan was looking for, scarlet woman that wore tight, black, leather dresses, also known as the "perfect one night stand woman."  
>He only paused long enough in front of the well-built body guard who's gruff face and chipped teeth would scare off any five year old. He quickly flashed his golden card ID at the bouncer, who immediately let him and Joe into the crowded club.<br>Dan waved to a few of his clubbing friends. He quickly grabbed Joe's tan shirt collar to keep him from slinking over to a group of six very pretty, illegally young girls in brightly colored tops. He pulled even harder as one of the young ladies dropped her ID card for the local high school three blocks away.  
>The duo walked up and leaned against an obsidian granite bar. The short, squally bar tender that looked like the typical nerd from Cambridge came from behind the various beer and wine selections. He quickly turned on the lights to shine on the silent waterfall, the water poured out of a thin slot with golden lights behind it making an image of the sun as it flowed onto flat glass. He approached the duo, shaking his head as he noticed them surveying the potential sluts.<br>"What can I get ya?" the bar tender asked.  
>"Make it a Vodka Martini. " Dan replied as Joe asked for another London Pride.<br>As he waited for his drink his blue eyes wandered around the club. He always stopped to see the intricate, neon design of a great, blue and white Chinese dragon. Then, his eyes slowly wandered to the colors of red, black, purple, and green shining from the dancing lights in the next room where a deep bass was jamming. He smiled as he grabbed his Martini cocktail and just let the music take over his thoughts.  
>Suddenly, Dan felt his phone vibrate. He pulled out his 2010 Droid flip phone and switched on to see a text screen. His face grew steadily redder, as he roughly bit down on his tongue when he read the small, white print against the black screen:<br>'Dear Mr. Stuart, we are sending this message to inform you of the transfer of a large fund of money from your account as of seven twenty-five this evening. The currency which was transferred amounts to Fifty million pounds. The transaction was performed by the following cosigner: Duke of Liverpool a.k.a Mr. Stuart. Thank you for your understanding and continuing business. Have a nice day.'  
>Joe drunkenly slinked over Dan's shoulder, quickly noticing Dan's frustrated, angry expression, he looked at the message, "oh, dat's tough man." He failed to sympathize.<br>Dan closed his phone forcibly, the bar tender looked confused from the loud snap. Dan grabbed his drink, and angrily downed it in a few gulps; his heart already burning hotter than the alcohol running down his throat. He slammed it onto the counter and briskly walked into the crowd. His eyes searched through the crowd. His heart began to hammer, and his cheeks burned but he remained calm until he spotted a girl standing by herself near the wall.  
>He quickly pushed through until he slinked with her into the shadows, only the brightest colors of lights could let them see each other's faces. He knew she was pretty and definitely on the hunt for a good money deal. Her red, leather top and skirt were so tight around her that if she kneeled the straps would have snapped. He leaned next to her; she presented a small smile, and touched his chest. He only smiled back.<br>"Hey prince charming, u look like you're in need of some company." She breathed into his ear. He ran his fingers through her long, curly blonde hair. Her eyes were like deep hazel spheres, he grabbed her hand. "Let's say we find somewhere a little more… comfortable." He charmed.  
>He took her out of the loud music and out of the Chinawhite, he ordered the valet to get his Ferrari. The woman's smile only widened as she saw the rich car pull up. He drove her through London's streets until he pulled up into parking lot of the Montral.<br>Within minutes of showing the desk clerk his ultimate, always passable golden card membership he led the girl up to the private suit. He placed his fingers on the handle below the silver, eloquent letters "Stuart Suite" she strutted in and automatically poured she some already placed cooled Champaign before placing herself on the white, silk bed sheets. He walked over to the small balcony window and drew the curtains in tight, the waiter brought up expensive, chocolate strawberries and a white vase full of red roses. She took of few sips of her drink; Dan felt more than the 1954 Champaign warm his chest. She slowly let her shoulder straps slip, then pulled him on top of her and kissed him as she started to unbutton his white shirt underneath his sleek, grey jacket.

******************************************************************************  
>Dan couldn't stop smiling as he walked up the marble steps of the Stuart mansion. He walked in between the two giant, white marble, Greek pillars before he entered the intricate, glass door that shaped itself into an awry looking S. He passed the shocked looks of all the maids, before he started to prance around like a pleased, young ram before crashing onto his green, big boy sofa.<br>The sixty inch, platinum TV was running the morning's news; the reporter was going on about a fresh murder investigation, and, of course, within seconds switched over to London's favorite topic, "_in happier news the long awaited Eric Stuart is preparing to take over the Stuart Family company also known as 'Stuart Enterprises…'" _Dan automatically shut the TV off as his brother's face appeared on the glossy screen.  
>He hummed as the maid brought in his morning shake and breakfast. He knew his parents were still vainly looking for him, always running a step behind in their quest to control him. And why did they even care? All his life he was the last one out between him and his perfect, Cambridge student, older brother Eric. Last night he took off to only ignite his parent's annoyance, after they had threatened to extinguish his rich lifestyle by taking away his own inheritance of five hundred million pounds.<br>Dan didn't care, he never did. What happened a few nights ago with that girl was just as it was; it was to rebel against and upset them. To prove to his parents that he was truly a royal; that they would never control him. He was never going to be the next, best student at any school including Cambridge. He smiled as he remembered running naked through the school yard, which really pissed the old fogs right off. He looked out the dome window, his grin turned to shouting as an old, rusted down tow truck started to drive away with his three million dollar Ferrari.  
>As he ran out the door his phone rang, he heard his mother's frantic voice before he placed it against his ear, "Daniel, where are you?" Daniel opened his mouth to retort but she interrupted before he could, "I just got off the phone from a very interesting call from Scotland Yard!"<br>"What the Hell are you-"  
>"Don't you interrupt! Your father is furious! Do you have any idea what position you have put us in?"<br>"Oh come on, Jane! It's not like this is the first time!"  
>"WHAT?"<br>"Don't act like you didn't know,"  
>"Didn't know? I mean you have definitely messed up before but this is in a whole different league! Do you have any idea how hard it's going to be to smooth this over?"<br>"It's not that big of a deal,"  
>"Murder is a very big deal!"<br>"Murder? I didn't murder anyone!"  
>"You didn't?"<br>"Of course not! Why the bloody hell did you think I did?"  
>"Your DNA was all over the crime scene. It was in our suite at the Montral hotel,"<br>He began to feel the heat and color leave his cheeks, "The Montral Hotel? But I haven't even been there in four days,"  
>"She was killed four days ago! She ordered food service for two, and was stabbed repeatedly with one of the knives!"<br>Dan began to feel panicky; his mind began to whirl trying to remember everything that had happened the morning he left, "Jane, I left her asleep in the morning! She was fine! I swear, I didn't hurt her!"  
>"Well the Police think you did it, so that is why Eric will be there to pick you up any minute."<br>"What? Why?"  
>"We are sending you to France while we fix this mess you put us in. You're going to an alternative behavioral getaway that your father and I have been looking into in the Regional National Chevreuse forest."<br>"What? Hell no! I am not going to be taught how to behave by a bunch of Frenchies! I mean, think about it! They're French! Remember Isabelle from Paris?"  
>"So help me, yes you are! This is your last chance. Your father thinks we should just let you reap your consequences; however, I had to point out what this would do to the family name."<br>"I don't give a bloody arse about the family name!"  
>"Whether you like it or not you are a Stuart! This is costing your father and I a fortune, and your father is seriously considering to disinherit you."<br>"But-"  
>"I won't hear another word! Things are already set in motion. You are going with your brother. Your bags are already packed, and you will be picked up by a man at the Paris City Airport. His name is Ted Terrington, and he will be driving you to your destination. And you <em>will<em> stay there until you have learned to act like a civilized young man worthy of the Stuart name! They have assured me they will not release you until you have proven you have reached a level of discipline only equaled by Eric.  
>"Jane, I am not going to-"<br>"Daniel! You are going to do this whether you like it or not! You have no choice in the matter!"  
>His mother stopped for a few seconds; he could hear his father cursing and ranting in the background. His mother sounded agitated as she came back on, "Your father has just returned from Scotland Yard, and I have matters to deal with."<br>"But, Jane-" Dan stopped talking as the phone clicked off on the other side. Looking up he saw a private taxi pull into the long driveway, his brother's silhouette in the backseat. Daniel could barely remember the next hour. Everything seemed to spin and move at warp speed until he found himself alone on the private plane to the most exciting city in the world, Paris France to try and become something he knew he wasn't; a gentleman. But as he pushed the seat down his head still spun with questions: why was that girl dead? How was he ever going to get out of this? And what pathetic excuse for a rehab for behavioral issues were his parents sending him to this time?


	4. Chapter 4

The plane hummed like a quite vacuum, Daniel hadn't moved from his seat for the last ten minutes. Ever since he had ran through the exit gate, up the stair ramp, handed his suitcases to the worthless, clumsy twit who dropped them on impact, down the plane's carpeted hall, and finally into his deluxe seat in his private plane.  
>Nothing was making sense, only a few days ago he had been a prince of the night clubs, a rich blue-blood with all the money and freedom he could ever want. Now, he was a murder suspect fleeing for his life and innocence. No one believed he was innocent, even his own mother didn't believe he was.<br>He stared out the window, nothing was helping. no matter what he said it couldn't prove anything, it only condemned him even more. And yet he was supposed to head off somewhere he had never been before, with a bunch of Frenchies that were supposed to teach him how to behave when he had nothing more than his cell phone to let him out into the soon to be "outside world". Yea, this day was just getting better and better.  
>He lay back against the soft, blue seat. He closed his eyes and slowly rubbed his pulsing temples that began to throb from his rising blood pressure, but despite the constant pounding his mind ran over what had happened that night. He had gone to the Chinawhite, gotten the text, found the girl, went to the Montral, then left around six-thirty before she had even woke up. She was plenty alive, she wasn't hurt, but how could he prove his innocence?<br>Daniel was trapped, he desperately sought an answer to get out of this mess, he wanted his Ferrari back, he wanted to be hanging with his friends, and the plain truth was that he wanted his life back. But it seemed that every conclusion, every lead, every little, microscopic fact only made him more at fault.  
>Over and over again he ran through the experience, looking for any clues, or signs that could save him. He was interrupted as someone grabbed his shoulder. He looked up to see a beautiful flight attendant; her white shirt was perfectly stuffed into her short black skirt, which matched with her silver belt. There were brass buttons on her navy, blue jacket.<br>She seemed very ordinary, until he saw her pale face and bright red lips; her bright blonde hair was kept undone, not at all groomed like the rest of the flight attendants. She also had a black, sun shaped tattoo around her eye. Daniel felt his blood turn to ice; he quickly turned away from those pale, gray eyes. Her voice was like a cold, flowing river even though she expressed a warm smile, Daniel assumed it was the red lipstick.  
>"Good day sir, is there any way I can assist you?"<br>He scoffed, but then turned with an artificial smile, "Yea, you can take your fat arse and get me a vodka martini."  
>"Ok sir," she replied,<br>"no, make that some chips,"  
>"ok, sir,"<br>"actually, no, get me chocolate cake,"  
>she started to patronize as she replied the same answer. "Ok, sir,"<br>"No, I'll take the martini,"  
>"are you sure, sir?" she teased,<br>"Of course I'm sure! Didn't your days on the corner teach you how to take orders?"  
>"Actually, sir, I used to be a secretary."<br>"Oh so that's where my dad found you. He must have decided that it was much easier just having you on his plane rather than in his office: too many people walk in on ya?"  
>"No, sir, I didn't work for your father; in fact it was your mother who hired me."<br>"Whatever just fetch me that chocolate cake,"  
>"I thought you wanted-"<br>"Shut up! Can't you tell I'm damn well bloody upset right now?" his stomach began to turn; he really didn't feel like eating or drinking anything. Daniel just wanted to be in control, to be served and listened to. He heard her cough before she replied,  
>"Of course, I know all about your misfortune,"<br>"oh and what do you know about it?"  
>"Well, I certainly don't believe you're guilty of hurting that young woman,"<br>"Right," he jeered, "I'm sure you don't."  
>"I simply believe you are finally starting to awaken,"<br>"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"  
>She placed her hand on his shoulder; her eyes seemed to melt into a kind mother's stare which made Daniel recoil a bit. Her voice also had changed as she said, "I think you'll come to understand, Daniel,"<br>he quickly looked away from her, trying to keep his cool he quickly, and mockingly replied, "where did my mom find you anyway; at the Looney bin?"  
>She gave a dry laugh, "no, I'll just go get you your cake now, sir,"<br>Daniel stared out the windows and the passing clouds; his mind going over the strange conversation over and over like a broken record. That woman seemed to know a little too much, was she somehow involved? Did she know the girl? Why was she trying to help him? He couldn't get her intense stare out of his mind. He shifted, trying to feel comfortable with his sour stomach, his rubbed his arms, feeling Goosebumps all the way down, he took a deep breath and abruptly buried his anxiety. After a moment, he realized she had called him by his name. His heart started to hammer, this woman did know too more than she was saying, instantly his mind resolved to confront her when she came back.  
>Soon, a hand reached down and a sweet voice said, "Here's your cake, sir."<br>Looking up, Daniel realized it was a different woman, she was a bit stocky, and her cheeks were full of freckles. "Where's the other stewardess?" he asked sitting upright in his chair.  
>Her eyebrows raised quizzically, "What other stewardess, sir?"<br>"You know the lady with the tattoo."  
>"I'm sorry, sir. You must be mistaken; I'm the only one here."<br>"But that's not-" he was cut off as the pilot came over the intercom.  
>'We are now making our final descent. We ask that you please put on your seatbelt and relax as we finish our journey. We are now arriving in Paris."<br>Daniel locked his seatbelt; his chest became hollow and empty. He knew he had to find a way out, for only in a few short minutes the plane would land on the ground, and his freedom would be gone.


	5. Chapter 5

Daniel walked down the plane stairs; he yelled at the clumsy idiot also known as the thin, curly haired black teen that dropped all three of his, suit-black, silver-rimmed Hartman cases. He put on his dark sun shades and looked around the busy airport. One road led from the private hanger and out into the city; he could see the faint silhouette of the Eiffel tower against the golden ridge where the sun hit the top of the city rooftops.  
>He continued to look around the giant blacktop; no one seemed to be coming for him. He waited a full half hour before he saw a sleek, black 2011 Camaro driving towards the plane.<br>He shook his head and turned to the stewardess, "You're lucky I don't get to decide the staff, or I'd fire all your bloody arses," he shouted.  
>He mumbled some more things as he started to walk towards the slowing vehicle. He raised his arm to wave but his grin went downhill as the Camaro drove right by him and pulled up to the only other private plane on the tarmac and the driver got out to help an elderly couple into the expensive car.<br>He turned back around to scrutinize again, but he just gaped as a little squared, olive green Simca 1000 pulled up to him. The engine whirred shrilly, and some smoke spewed out the exhaustion pipe before the car made a small pop as the driver put it in park.  
>The car looked like someone had scraped together anything and everything they could find from a car graveyard. Daniel looked at its mismatched outside, its olive-green meshing into brown and black. There were small lights on the high sides, one white and the other yellow attached to silver lines that led up to a small silver rose attachment.<br>The door shrieked as out of the car stepped a tall man; his black hair was very well greased and pulled back. He wore thin, circle glasses that covered his casual brown eyes and sleek, thin black eyebrows. He had a tight jaw which made his lower face look like a square; his neck was hidden by his high white shirt collar, his trench coat seemed split in two, one side was completely tan, the other was grey. Even the buttons were half brass and half silver, contrasting the lights and darks on each side.  
>Daniel laughed "you can't be serious?" he turned to the stranger. The stranger gave a small smile then sighed as he grabbed Daniel's suitcases. His voice was deep, and inflexible,<br>"Sir, I wish I wasn't. But, alas, you're coming with me. My name is Ted Terrington, and I will be your driver for the next few months."  
>Ted threw the baggage into the backseat; Daniel was still standing there with his mouth open wide as Ted opened the front passenger door. Ted kept his face devoid of emotion as he said "sir, we must be on our way."<br>The next three hours were drudgery, Daniel didn't notice the ancient buildings or churches; he didn't care. The small car bumped, rolled, coughed, and sputtered the whole time. Daniel just dug deeper into the soft coated black seat. His legs started to cramp from having no room to stretch, it felt like he had been stuffed and cramped inside a little kid's bumper car.  
>They passed rolling green hills on the outer edge of Paris, before approaching some distant, condensing woods. Daniel looked at his driver; Ted's face was still frozen and free of any emotion.<br>Daniel tried to stretch his sore legs, he groaned before he said "So, Mr. Wonka-"  
>"Excuse me sir?"<br>"You know, Willy Wonka; he wore half and half, or at least in his office; how about Half-Man?"  
>"I'm sorry you've lost me, sir."<br>"Forget it." Daniel scoffed as his legs reassumed their painful position.  
>The trees slowly began to thicken as time passed like a snail crossing a three mile road. It was another two hours before the day seemed to darken because of the thick shadows.<br>The small car continued to travel down a single stretch of paved road; the trees were all shades of green and faint hints of yellow. The bright white tress contrasted to the few dark pines and red barked, smaller ferns and trees. The canopy seemed very bright and alive compared to the dark greens, and browns on the ground. Daniel just stared out of the small, green tinted window. He watched as he passed mighty great pines, pale beech, and rough barked chestnut. Long branches breathed in the wind on the higher larch and oak trees.  
>The forest only continued to thicken like a quilt being slowly sewn together. But all the majesty and colors didn't sooth or comfort him. Through his eyes everything seemed dark, even the bright colors of the sun shining through the leaves seemed dull; he had struggled and stretched his mind to find a solution, a way to escape what was happening. He rubbed his forehead, his mind only ached from the thought of what was about to happen.<br>He knew the drill, this wasn't the first time his parents had sent him somewhere to what they called "a place to get better disciplined." First it was the Eton College after he had tried to take off with his dad's 1950 mustang. Sure by the end of the day he had completely wrecked it, but they still didn't give him more time then Eric. It only lasted two years before they shipped him off to Arizona in the United States to yet another behavioral center to reassemble his naughty actions into positive actions. And now his parents were trying their same ditch off tactic again by sending him to a bunch of Frenchies.  
>His legs seemed to get shocked by an emergency defibrillator as the car sharply turned right and bounced up onto a small, dirt road sending major shock and cramps up his thighs and bumping his head on top of the hard, short roof. He groaned and bit his lip trying to move his sore legs.<br>"hey," he grumbled turning to Ted. "How much longer do we have to be in this piece of crap?"  
>"Another hour, sir." Ted simply replied.<br>The forest started to thin, but only around the dirt road. Daniel felt his chest start to brew up again, he forced himself to close his eyes and take a few deep breaths. Everything inside of him felt numb, he just listened to wheels beat, and scrape down the road trying to calm his flopping stomach.  
>The ride suddenly slowed and the car rolled on smoothly, Daniel opened his eyes to see a huge bared gate opening between two stone gargoyles. He moved, stretching his sore legs; his eyes slightly widened as they drove across a long, stone bridge. He couldn't believe he was staring right at a castle: a real six-pointed tower castle.<br>He turned to the still, stone faced Ted, he sneered before looking back at the castle, then back at Ted. Laughter started to build in his throat.  
>"You can't be serious." He chuckled.<br>"Sir?" Ted asked quizzically.  
>"Where did my mother find this place? I mean, I've had my share of dumps but this is just insane."<br>"I only do what I'm told sir."  
>"Of course, Half-Man, you must only have half a brain too."<br>The car popped as it stopped beside the long, delicately designed, wooden doors above three stone steps. The doors were huge, thin, painted in a deep royal blue with white fleur de lis. Daniel looked up at the looming towers above him behind his window, some anger started to pinch and prod inside of him, where his parents so dim witted to send him to a place like this? Apparently: they were.  
>Five people were patiently waiting: a portly woman, a tall, thin, dark blonde man, a fairly robust man with a handlebar mustache, a beautiful, dark haired woman, and a man with shoulder length, brown hair. None of them looked very inviting, though, as he started forward, the plump woman tried to give him a friendly smile.<br>"What's this; my bloody welcoming committee?" he said to Ted.  
>Ted didn't reply but simply opened the squealing car door, grabbed the elephant sized suit cases, then walked up the steps and through the open doors after nodding to the beautiful woman who gently smiled back. Daniel forced himself to pull the handle, his legs screamed in pain, and relieve as he stood up.<br>He deeply sighed and looked at the car, somehow wishing Ted had left the keys in the ignition, so he could escape this ancient, dull, freaky medieval prison. But Daniel knew his luck; Ted had taken the keys with him, probably foreseeing his intentions and so quickly took them into the bowels of the dark castle. Looking up he noticed that the crowd at the door hadn't moved at all. He sighed again as he started to walk toward them.  
>"Bonjour, Mr. Stuart," the thin man said as he got closer.<br>He sneered, "That's 'sir,'" he spat quickly wiping the long grin from the man's face. He was about to give another sharp jeer but quickly found himself backing up when the long-haired man advanced. He had taken on plenty of bullies back in Eton, this man had far broader shoulders and was at least a foot taller than him, but what made him back away was the piercing glare in those deep blue eyes.  
>"Not while you're here," the man stated with a firm glower, "you are nothing more than a simple man while you are staying with us. Do you understand?"<br>Daniel felt the urge to punch this guy's face out, his hand tightened into a fist ready for the boiling fight; but he found himself nodding in conformity before he had made any sort of conscious effort to throw his arm. The man smiled as he saw Daniel's fist loosen.  
>"Good. Now there are some rules which Cogsworth will explain to you," he said and turned, taking the arm of the beautiful woman and walking back through the doors.<br>Daniel stared after them a few moments before he realized how submissive he had been. His blank lips turned into a sneer as he looked back at the other people. The one with the handlebar mustache walked up to him and said, "Well, the master has asked me to explain the rules to you."  
>"The master?" Daniel sneered.<br>Cogsworth scoffed softly before he continued, "Yes. Now, you are expected to be on time to all meals. Breakfast starts at exactly half-past seven, lunch is at noon on the dot, and dinner is precisely at five o'clock. If you are late than you shall not be served; a gentleman is always on time." As if to emphasize his point, he pulled an old-fashioned pocket watch out of his vest and checked the time.  
>"No need to tell me twice, Pocket-watch," Daniel mocked and went to walk through the doors but Cogsworth stopped him.<br>"There is more; you may explore the castle and it's grounds, except for the west wing, which is off limits to all but a few limited individuals."  
>"Why? What's in the west wing?"<br>"That is none of your concern, Mr. Stuart," he turned as if to leave but the other man cleared his throat loudly, and Cogsworth turned back around, "oh, and one more thing: you are not allowed under any circumstances to approach or talk to the master's daughter, unless there is a chaperone present, and she gives you her express permission. Now-" Cogsworth stopped as Ted slinked out of the doors. His chubby eyebrows lifted quizzically trying to remember something. He snapped his fingers at Ted.  
>"Excuse me sir, I sincerely apologize but I cannot remember your name."<br>Ted only gave a polite head bow, Cogsworth turned back to Daniel. "This gentleman," he reprieved, "is my associate in charge of household, he will show you to your room and will give you the rest of the rules, and make sure you get all your necessary items from the city."  
>Daniel blinked. "Excuse me? Are you telling me I can't get my own things?"<br>Cogsworth just smiled, "no, Mr. Stuart, we have direct orders to keep you here. The master never breaks his word."  
>"This is ludicrous."<br>The thin man smiled wider, Cogsworth started to turn red as the man took a deep bow and laughed before grabbing and shaking Daniel's hand, "Please monsieur; don't view this as a bad thing. After all you're our guest!"  
>Cogsworth turned redder, "Lumier! That's enough." He sputtered.<br>Lumier turned to Cogsworth; he clicked his tongue before smiling again. "Cogsworth, have a heart."  
>"Enough Lumier, Mr. Stuart please go with… ah-hem what's your name again?"<br>"Ted Terrington, sir."  
>"You will go with Mr. Terrington." With that Cogsworth turned and started to walk away, quickly joined by Lumier. Daniel could hear them start to bicker as they got farther away:<br>"Now Cogsworth, don't you think you're being a bit harsh?"  
>"Of course not! He is a delinquent!"<br>"But, Monsieur, weren't we all at that age?"  
>"I most certainly was not!"<br>"Oh come on now-"  
>"Do you think the master would have chosen me to be the head of the household if-"<br>"You are not the head of the household! You are just an old ornament: like the grandfather clock!"  
>"Who are you calling a 'grandfather,' you outdated lantern!" the door shut behind them with a snap.<br>After a moment, Daniel turned back to Ted and said with a smirk, "So how long have they been married?"  
>Ted didn't even crack a smile as he replied, "Right this way, if you please."<br>Daniel rolled his eyes and then followed Ted into the main foyer. Six mighty pillars reached up that held crouching gargoyles and angels that touched the marble ceiling. He continued to walk straight along with the royal red carpet. He felt his breath leave for a few seconds as he saw the golden railed staircase. The stairs were also made of golden polished white marble, the staircase split into two different directions leading to the east, and west sections of the castle.  
>His fingers trailed along the railing; it was smooth, delicate and shined in the sunlight from the huge arch window in front of him. Ted turned to the left, leading up more marble stairs that slowly turned into grey stone meshed with a glossy black marble. He started to count the steps as his expensive, sleek shoes touched the rising carpet, "<em>1, 2, 3…<em>" but then looked up as he heard another young man's voice up above him.  
>As he breached the final step, he saw a young, chocolate haired woman heading towards them. She wore a deep, forest green gown. Her face was delicate, and thin; Daniel felt something stop him on the final step as she passed him with a, blonde, teenage boy.<br>He continued to stare after the girl before hearing Ted clear his throat loudly.  
>"Is there a problem?"<br>Daniel pulled himself back together, he brushed his hand over his spiked hair before he turned back and scoffed, "not even, I just didn't know anyone lived here who was under eighty."  
>Ted started walking again before replying, choosing his words carefully, "that young woman is the owner's only daughter. I would suggest you tread carefully around her. The, uh, the staff is extremely protective of her, and it would be in your best interest for you to keep a… gentlemanly distance from the young lady. It may help you to keep in mind your past mistakes and the reason why you are here."<br>Daniel felt his fist tighten again, the anger had returned along with the deep rebellion. He followed after Ted, but he knew Ted would never see the complete malicious smile that crossed his lips as Ted opened another door.  
>"<em>Well, in that case,<em>" he chuckled to himself. _"I wonder how long it will be before she'll __**want**__ to show me her bloomers, I'll give it about a day before she tries to be all over me, and maybe a weak before she tries to sneak into my room. I mean, Hell; who ever said __**I**__ was a gentleman."_


	6. Chapter 6

Daniel watched as the girl disappeared up the next flight of stairs, it was only when Ted jerked his arm that he continued to follow him down the hall. He looked at all the suits of armor; standing like frozen ghosts, they seemed to watch him as he passed.  
>The statues were mostly of long-fanged beasts, and scary, open mouthed, bearing gargoyles. He looked up to see intricate ceiling paintings of stories from ancient Greece, and some that looked like genealogy of the ancient French Royal family's. He recognized the headstrong, fair face of Queen Eleanor, who, after she divorced her French husband king Louise the VI, married the fiercer British king Henry II.<br>He stopped at a painting of what seemed to be the beautiful woman who was with her husband when he had arrived. She was younger in the painting, and she was indeed a beauty. Perfect curved cheeks, deep brown eyes, fair skin and body, and her smile could melt the coldest ice, but she was flawed.  
>He looked closer; scoffing at the thought she covered all her beauty with so much frills, and clothing. And her hair was kept up hideously in too many braids instead of showing off her stuff. He laughed, <em>"after all,"<em> he thought to himself, _"a woman is only worth it if she can make your blood boil by being able to show off her body."  
><em> Ted gave another sharp cough, Daniel turned to see his babysitter standing next to an open door. The door itself was painted white and gold, a curved golden handle attached to a tiny golden flower that clicked as Ted pushed the door open and let Daniel inside.  
>Daniel nodded as he looked at the flourish designs carved into the long legs on the bed stand. The room was a light blue with white trimming; the bed had long white drapes hanging over the top and flowingly traveled down with the beds wooden legs. The dresser was old; it had clawed feet, and delicate etched details in each of its grains, like the dresser he once saw in a museum back in London, which dated back to the 13th century.<br>He ran his hand over the smooth, wooden surface grasping the smallest bits of dust on his fingers; his lips went up once again into a sneer. He turned to Ted, briskly throwing up his hand.  
>"What's this?" he jeered, Ted raised his brows quizzically over his circle spectacles.<br>"I don't see anything." He replied. Daniel looked back at his palm, barely being able to see the small grains of dust himself; he just wanted someone to command and take orders. His blood pressure only rose as Ted calmly went back to opening the curtains, but Daniel quickly dropped it; his thoughts went back to other things, including that girl from the hall.  
>Over the next few hours Daniel had continued to do two things: ignore Ted's rules and ramblings, and only think about the beautiful girl and how he was going to charm her; after all he was the king of the charmers, the ultimate ladies' man. He kept seeing her thin, delicate nature in his mind and only smiled; this girl had probably never seen or let alone been with a <em>real <em>man her entire life. Yea, she would easily come to him.  
>It would be easy, he would avoid Ted's view, go up to her before anyone could notice with a seductive smile to make her melt. He could already see her pathetic girly faint as he reached out and took her hand then her gasp as he kissed it. Daniel smiled again, he would keep his eyes only on her through the whole dinner, that was sure to get her blood rising. Then after dinner he would slyly kiss her cheek as he walked by. Oh yes, he could already feel her heart flutter and stop.<br>He blinked as his mind returned to the light, open room. He looked at the clock and noticed that it was almost six-thirty. He quickly started getting ready for dinner; he wanted to be slightly early, so he could get a head start on his enticing plan to seduce the girl.  
>He quickly spiked, and primped up his short brown hair, then he lifted his arms making his muscles slightly flex back at himself in the large oval mirror that hung against the western wall next to his ancient dresser. He pulled on some sleek, air pressed, black slacks before throwing on a dark red, low collared shirt. He smiled as he casually left the top, glossy black button undone showing off his neck and collar bone, the shirt was just tight enough to show his muscle definition, without constricting his arms and shoulders. He rolled up the long sleeves to his elbows, smiling as he watched them flex in the mirror.<br>He smartly polished up his very unused, black business shoes that his father had given him for his birthday the previous year. He tested his breath against his hand while pulling a small box of Icebreakers mints, along with his spiciest_ Gucci 'Guilty pour Homme_ cologne from his overloaded suitcase.  
>He took one last look at himself as he grabbed and casually slipped on his black, silver rimmed fedora. Before starting to chew on four mints as he opened the door and confidently walked down the corridor towards the main foyer.<br>He walked down the small flight of stairs, humming to himself as his shoes clapped the stone floor on the bottom. He turned right heading through another hall decorated with more suits of armor as he headed towards the dining room. He stopped as he noticed the girl coming from the opposite direction; quickly speeding up his gait so they would meet just outside the door away from spying eyes, and to avoid his guard dog.  
>The girl paused at as she looked at Daniel; her eyes skeptically looked him up and down as if there was nothing appeasing about him. He slightly tipped his fedora back, smiling as he slid his hand down her arm seductively, before grabbing her hand; he gave her a clever wink before he kissed her hand softly with the faintest touch of his lips. His smile turned into a sly grin, he could feel her body turn rigid. He looked up at her his voice dropped but warmed seductively, sounding like moist, tepid sunlight as he said, "Good evening, <em>Mademoiselle Cheri<em>."  
>His grin quickly faded as she whipped her hand away from him. She scoffed and rolled her eyes with a slight hint of disgust as she turned and walked into the dining room. Daniel stood in shock for a moment before straightening up and looking after her in disbelief and anger; how dare she treat him like that? Who did she think she was? Daniel turned around and sulked for a moment before taking a deep breath to calm down his frustration along with his heated thoughts.<br>_"Ok_," he thought to himself as he took off his hat to run his hand through his hair, "_ok she's just playing hard to get. She just doesn't recognize my advances; she's too much of a country bumpkin. Yea, that must be it; she was just too stupid to truly understand my intentions_."  
>He put back on his fedora, and strutted into the dining room. He stopped in surprise when he not only saw all the chatting and conversing cease as all heads turned his way, but most of the dinner 'guests' were the servants that he had been seeing all day; everyone was here, even the few scattered dusters and lady cleaners that he had passed in the upstairs halls.<br>Almost all the chairs were taken except for the one random exception, only one of the tall, black, high backed chairs was sitting untouched at the head of the table, just to the left of where the young woman sat.  
>"<em>Finally," <em>he thought to himself, "_I'm getting some of the respect I deserve."_ Then he smiled as another thought crossed his mind, _"and now it will be so much easier for her not to run away, and for me to make my move."  
><em> He arrogantly swaggered and flounced as he made his way along the table, everyone else's eyes seemed glued to him, always continuing to follow his swayed progress. The only exception was the girl, who was still talking animatedly to the thin, twig looking; sandy-haired teenager Daniel had seen her with earlier.  
>Daniel sneered and plopped himself into the large, ornate seat; immediately the silence seemed to thicken as everyone on the table tensed; Cogsworth who sat on his left, was opening and closing his mouth wordlessly, and awkwardly in shock, his handlebar mustache quivered as he continued to utter and babble half said words.<br>Even Rose had stopped her conversation with the boy sitting to her right and turned to Daniel with a stunned look.  
>Daniel ignored all the tension, his lip curled up before he leered at Rose "So, who's your boyfriend?" he teased.<br>Immediately, the boy sitting next to her turned a vivid shade of crimson and turned almost guiltily to the other end of the long, polished table towards the beautiful woman sitting at the other head which Daniel assumed must be the girl's mother, the boy shook his head adamantly, before turning to the stout woman Daniel had seen in the welcome party, who absent mindedly pouring tea into the overflowing cup on her serving cart, her eyes still full of surprise and shock.  
>"Oh I see," Daniel mocked, and then slyly winked at towards the girl, "it's a secret romance; sorry to let the cat out of the bag."<br>"You really should get out of my father's chair."  
>Daniel leaned back more comfortably into the soft chair, his smug grin only widened, "Oh, it's your father's chair." He chided, "Well, I'm sitting in it now; besides, what was it you said about being late for dinner: oh yea, if you're late, you don't get served."<br>She sat up straighter, more dignified; her lips didn't even tremble or show any sign of distress, "My father is extremely busy. He also happens to be the master of this castle, and you should give him your respect."  
>"Respect?" Daniel retorted, "Respect? Why the bloody hell would I give respect to that freak of a man running this pathetic excuse for a tourist attraction? I mean, really, look at this house of some billionaire hobo. It's worse than a one-star hotel without the soap; something a gentleman like me wouldn't even want to clean his shoes on."<br>She suddenly stood up, head erect, and glared down at him, Daniel only rebuked further as he crossed and placed his leg on the arm of the chair. Her cheeks finally started to show some color, "Even if you were a sliver of the man my father is, you wouldn't be considered to even shine the shoes for the stable boy!"  
>The silence of the table was barely interrupted as soft murmuring erupted; Cogsworth was still speechless and fumbling whimpers, but Lumier had a soft smile spreading across his face.<br>"Oh please," Daniel scoffed, "look at the staff around here. I mean, take idiot pouring tea all over herself; does she ever even get her fat arse out of the kitchen. I bet your cookie jars always empty."  
>The sandy haired boy jumped to his feet, his hands in fists, Daniel slightly shook his head as the girl quickly turned and grabbed his arm, whispering something into his ear. The boy started to refuse but he calmed down slightly as he saw her fierce look. Daniel turned back to the plump woman he had insulted as she started to tear up, but she still held her head high.<br>"Oh I see, his romance is with her, not you," Daniel sneered with a chuckle in his throat; the girl turned back to face him.  
>Lumier put his face in his head and muttered, "<em>Abruti."<em> before he quickly looked away from Daniel to the still whimpering Cogsworth.  
>Rose's countenance only strengthened and became more determined. Her voice changed from temperate to hot, "excuse me sir, you have no right to speak to my friends like that. And I order to you as a princess to bit down on your vulgar, arrogant tongue and to obey my first request. And you are to address my friends by their correct names, Cogsworth, Lumier, Chip, the lovely woman over there is Mrs. Potts, you shall call my mother Belle, and my father Aaron and you shall call me by Rose, do you understand, or has your weak, self-obsessed, shallow mind completely dried up?"<br>Daniel wasn't finished, his blood started to froth and boil inside of him. He was going to prove this annoying, self-absorbed, country bumpkin who was really in charge. He slightly pulled down his fedora, a wicked smile crossed his face but his eyes remained hidden under the hats brow.  
>"Well excuse me Rose," he hissed, "I don't take orders from a pretend princess, or whatever you call yourself. But I will call your employment anything I want, like fumbling pocket-watch here, who can't seem to be more cognitive then a clock that's been blown up from the inside, or "Mr. Candle", always looking about with his stupid grin, doesn't he know that no one wants to see his misshapen, un-brushed teeth? Or even his ill taste in clothes and style?<br>Or even your friend "twigs" here, I've seen people eat people like him for just one euro and some cheap candy. And then there's you're… oh so respected father," he raised his hand and scratched his cheek suggestively with his middle finger, before reassuming his chiding speech, "I mean what kind of man shows up the first two seconds then leaves? And then thinks that his so called "superiority" should still hold more than invisible water in a holed bag,"  
>Daniel didn't notice all the servants start to cringe, Cogsworth gave a small gasp and squeak as Lumier's eyes grew wide; because under the rimmed fedora Daniel couldn't see the casting shadow that started to grow from behind him. Cogsworth gave one last squeaky breath as Daniel continued,<br>"I mean, I would gladly let him hold my piss in a cup if he were actually here, and I believed he could hold any amount to his words; after all if anyone knows me, which I note they don't; they will quickly realize that the only person in charge is me, and no overgrown, long haired hippy is going to take that away from me."  
>Daniel felt something hit his chair; he slowly lifted his head feeling the tiniest spike of fear as he noticed the shadow around him. He looked up to see Rose's father; his cold stare in his intense blue eyes seemed to bear into his soul. He swallowed some drying spittle in his throat as those deep blue eyes flashed and wreathed in flame, but as he swallowed his fear went with it. Daniel just cockily smiled.<br>"So what's up old man?" he retorted with a hidden sneer.  
>The whole room seemed to freeze and stop in time that exact moment. Everyone continued to stare at Daniel's chair, not even noticing as Cogsworth gave a weak gasp, then passed out causing the chair he was sitting in to fall backwards and land with a big <strong>bump!<strong>_  
><em>Lumier just heavily whispered _"Oh, merde …" _while Mrs. Potts gave a tiny start to help Cogsworth, but stopped as she saw the stern look in Belle's eyes. _  
><em>Daniel couldn't have guessed what hit him next; the man grabbed the scruff of his shirt and hoisted him up easier than a cat with a thin, dead mouse in its mouth. His lower foot caught hold of the arm rest, but Aaron pulled him clean off causing Daniel's ankle to feel as if it had spontaneously combusted.  
>All Daniel felt next was the painful crash on the stone floor, his head throbbed, a small warm stream of blood started to run down his lip from his aching nose. He looked over at the tall, muscular man. He wiped away some of the blood from his mouth, then pushed himself up being careful not to stand on his burning ankle. Aaron started to advance. Daniel stood there, unafraid of the hulking form approaching him; he just stood taller as Aaron over-casted him; his nostrils flaring.<br>Aaron started to lift his hand, Daniel waited for his face to get close. Then just as he could see the wreathing flames before he spit blood into this bully's face.  
>Aaron wiped the blood away with the back of his hand and glanced at it a second before turning back toward Daniel. Aaron started to raise his arm again but a slender hand rested on his shoulder, "Aaron," a voice said warningly and Daniel saw Belle standing behind him, though he had no idea how she had gotten there so quickly, but she wasn't alone; it appeared half of the table had now gotten through their shock enough to join her wearing identical looks of worry.<br>Aaron looked back at her face with his hand still raised. He looked ready to continue with his fight, but, looking at her caring face, he slowly let his shoulders drop, and his body relaxed. He turned around and started to walk away.  
>Daniel swallowed some more blood, a cheeky, mischievous smile showed on his lips as he impudently whispered "Pussy," just loud enough to make it echo in the still air. Aaron's back tensed and Daniel prepared himself for another high punch, but before Aaron had even turned around, Daniel felt a fist slam into his cheekbone and he reeled away in surprise gripping his already pounding, sore face.<br>"You will never talk to my father that way again!" Rose said shaking her sore hand.  
>Daniel felt blood rush to his face, he looked around at the audience to his degradation; he was shocked and humiliated further when they all turned away from him and started back to the table; Mrs. Potts rushing over to help Rose wrap her hand in a cloth.<br>Daniel looked on for just a moment longer before turning away; he tenderly rubbed his cheek, before sorely leaning down to pick up his fedora that had landed next to the tall, wooden doors leading back into the foyer.  
>His heart felt like a poisonous fire, he sulked his way up the stairs, trying to fight his flared up ankle. Each step seemed like he was walking on scorching fire.<br>When he reached his room he slammed his door behind him, he looked down at his blood stained hand, he slowly felt the cotton stitched in his fedora, but the anger only raged hotter; he crumbled his hat before tossing it back into his already over flowing suit case. He looked out the arch shaped windows, the sun was a small, red, half-circle setting below distant hills and mountains. He just scoffed before turning away from the orange sunlight, the only fact Daniel knew was that he was stuck here, in the middle of some god forsaken castle lost somewhere in the woods.  
>Daniel plopped onto the soft, white bed sheets. His mind racing with anger and frustration, he unbuttoned some more of his shirt. Before looking at his purple, bloody face in the hanging mirror; his mind continued to spit and hiss, "<em>How dare they?"<em> he thought angrily to himself, "_How dare they abuse me like this? Did their warped fairy tale act convince them they had some right to treat him like this? I mean I've done nothing to them; I was just ditched here by my parents, and I'm not even guilty of what everyone has accused me of."  
><em>He turned over onto some small, square pillows. He swore as more blood started to come out his already sore nose, he cupped his face hoping to catch some of the drops before they could stain the white sheets.  
><em>"I have to get out of here; I won't last for much longer if I stay. Mom will take me back, I'll pay my way through, I'm a Stewart; I can go anywhere I want go, and do whatever I want."<br>_His mind continued to draw up ideas on how to escape, but after a half-hour of failed attempts, Daniel turned again to look in the mirror, he only saw a small, weak boy curled up on the bed just wanting to go home; but Daniel shook his head as he remembered, _"I don't have a home."_  
>He slightly jumped as a few small, quick knocks beat against his door. He threw himself up as Ted came into the darkening room. He walked over to Daniel, in his left hand he was carrying a silver bowl with some small white towels hanging on its rimmed edge; in his right he was holding a cotton bag that slummed down and stretched from the weight of whatever was inside it.<br>Ted still had a face of stone as he lowered the bowl; there was crystal clear water inside. Daniel looked up at ted, he couldn't help but sneer; Ted just looked back down at him, his brow raised quizzically over his circle spectacles as he said "sir?"  
>Daniel grabbed the one of the soft, white towels. He soaked it inside the warm water, before pressing it against his aching face. The warmth seemed to soak and pull the stiffness out, he nearly swore as Ted began to pull of his shoes, but bit down his tongue as Ted placed the bag on his sore ankle. Daniel felt something cold move in the bag, he realized it was ice as it crunched together.<br>He gave a small nod to Ted, enjoying the numbing cold on his scorching ankle. Ted replied with his own polite nod, and then left Daniel to clean himself up. Daniel enjoyed the warm water against his face, but his heart still boiled in anger. As he tenderly wiped his growing bruise, he thought of how Rose had insulted him; how she degraded him. He had only one thought in his mind: how he was going to utterly get pay back tomorrow, and how he was going to get out of this stone prison and find his way back to London.


	7. Chapter 7

"He is such an arrogant, hypocritical, self-absorbed, rotten toe-rag!" Rose was standing in the kitchen next to a counter laden with tea and biscuits; her friends gathered around her also sharing their distaste of their ill-welcomed houseguest.  
>"He is an <em>Abruti <em>for sure," Lumier piped in, quickly winking towards a young woman dressed in a low cut black servant shirt, with thin white folds for the shoulders as she paused from dusting off the now empty cupboards as Mrs. Potts grabbed some more tea cups.  
>"<em>Abruti?<em>" Chip burst out, "he is far more than that! He is a _connard!"  
><em>"Chip!" Mrs. Potts reprimanded.  
>Chips cheeks immediately blushed, he looked like a guilty five year old caught with the cookie jar, his eyes begged his mother's acquittal, "Pardon my French," Chip added guiltily, Mrs. Potts returned to filling the small, white, porcelain cups, but gave Chip an unnerving glare as he whispered, "But he really is a <em>connard<em>."  
>Rose only smiled; she graciously took a cup from Mrs. Potts before Cogsworth gave a quick, getting attention cough. He stood up from a short, wooden, three legged stool and whisked his hand sharply through the air,<br>"I hate to say anything impolite," he sniffed as he took a cup. Lumier gave a quick, fake cough pretending to choke on his tea. The young woman servant girl gave a glance of worry, but only smiled as he winked at her again. He cleared his throat before he muttered, "No you don't." before taking another quick sip of his tea.  
>Cogsworth ignored the interruption, "he certainly is a disgraceful young man," he asserted "and I do not believe we truly have much hope of rehabilitating him."<br>A large, heavy set woman sitting next to Lumier loudly scoffed, everyone except Cogsworth turned to look at her. She was dressed in a tan, loosely fit dress, white ruffles covered her neck and wrists and she had huge diamond earrings with a matching necklace pendant. She raised her pointy nose into the air, scoffing again before Rose gave a small nod.  
>"Yes Gisabelle," Rose replied, "what's on your mind?" the large woman still kept her nose in the air, but briskly took a cup from Mrs. Potts before she harshly replied, "Much hope?" she scoffed, "please, have you seen his wardrobe? He has the worst color sense I have ever seen. His clothes are tight fitting, they have no long sleeves, the fabric is awful, and nothing matches!"<br>"What does that actually have to do with anything?" chirped the young servant girl as she flattened her knee-length, black skirt with her hands. She gave a small smile before sitting very close to Lumier, ignoring the bright red faced Gisabelle.  
>"Well Madeline," Lumier chuckled as he moved closer to her, slowly sliding one hand flirtatiously under her chin, "you know a man's clothing choices say a lot about the type of man he is. For instance, my nicely fitting vest along with my golden sleeves and proud white cusps say that I'm-"<br>"a complete dunce," Cogsworth interrupted.  
>Everyone burst into laughter as Lumier started to gabble like a scared Cogsworth; Chip choked slightly on his tea before laughing to himself. Lumier raised his head high, before giving a sharp, cold "hmph!" Cogsworth just went back to sipping his tea, slowly raising it to his lips, then wiping his mouth each time the cup went down to make sure not one drop dripped on his perfect, red vest.<br>Mrs. Potts only laughed, "How about more tea?" she warmly suggested as she grabbed the empty tea pot, taking it over to large, ash covered stove. She started to turn the knob but gave a little frown as she realized the fire bowl below the warmers was empty. "Chip," she asked, "could you please go and fetch the wood cutter? We need more wood for the tea."  
>"Sure, mom," Chip replied, he jumped down from a high, smooth, white counter; he gave his mother a quick smile before he walked out the small, wooden edged doorway that led to the back part of the castle, which followed a small, beaten dirt path to the inner forest.<br>"Anyways," Rose continued trying to get back on subject, "have you noticed how he whines about everything? I even saw him complaining about how horrible a mirror looked! That mirror was a gift from the neighboring country."  
>"I'm sure he was just complaining about the reflection he was seeing," laughed Lumier.<br>Mrs. Potts tried to scowl disapprovingly but it didn't come off anywhere near sincere. "Well, I do worry about him. I mean, I do not think he has left his room for more than ten minutes at a time except to eat, and he's always keeping to the corners in the hallways and corridors when he does."  
>"And he has most certainly has not learned his lesson on the proper way to behave at the dinner table," Cogsworth added, "always strutting about and treating poor…. Um whatever his name is like a slave as if he was the emperor of Rome.<br>"At least he doesn't try to sit in the master's chair anymore," Mrs. Potts said nervously. She clumsily dropped a small, tea spoon; her face firm but a little shaky in her attempt trying to defend Daniel, only blushing from the shocked looks of everyone around her which gave her the conclusion that she had failed miserably at doing so.  
>Mrs. Potts blinked as Rose sharply clicked her tea cup against the little porcelain plate in her hand. "The only reason he doesn't he doesn't sit in an indecorous place such as my father's chair is because he know that next time he does my father will not be so gentle with him!" She snapped. Her fingers tightened their grip the small cup holding the rest of her minty, lemon tea. Lumier gave yet another flirtatious wink to the Madeline before looking at Rose.<br>"Sadly I believe you wouldn't be near so 'gentle' either," he grinned as he slid his arm around Madeline's waist; she promptly smacked it away before letting a small, teasing smile play on her deep, red lips.  
>"Well, he deserved a lot much more than he received," Rose disputed, she quickly looked away from the still grinning Lumier as she took another sip of her tea; giving a slightly disappointed frown seeing the low liquid line in the bottom of her cup.<br>Cogsworth sniffed disdainfully and took a sip of tea in a dignified manner. He whisked his hand through the air, quickly coughing to clear his throat,  
>"Yes he did receive no less than he deserved." He chided, "However, I do not think it is very befitting of a young lady, especially one of your standing to lower herself to that level of degradation, after all you-"<br>"I don't blame her one bit," Gisabelle said contemptuously, "I would like to give that boy a piece of my mind. Especially, when he leaves his dirty clothes all over his floor and expects me to pick them up for him like Madeline."  
>Madeline started to respond, but Mrs. Potts beat her to the point as she sweetly inclined,<br>"Alright, I will admit he can be quite disdainful, but honestly, the poor boy has been thrown into a world he doesn't know. Think about it, he has no friends, no family, no way to the outside world; I mean, yes he can be very appalling-"  
>"More like despicable," Chip interrupted as he reentered the kitchen followed by the hunched-over figure of the woodcutter who slowly lumbered behind him; his large, muscular arms laden down with the logs, his legs were thick like the trunk of great pines, he well stood over everyone in the room, even with the deduction of his heavy, arched over form. He didn't say anything as the group continued to converse. Painfully groaning as he heavily kneeled down to the floor, Rose saw his bright blue eyes, two small spheres of cold lightning underneath his mudded up black hair. She gave a weak smile before he promptly started to put the hefty logs underneath the cold stove.<br>"What do you think of him?" Madeline asked the woodcutter before once again smacking away Lumier's sneaking hand.  
>his heavy, dirt covered lips twitched, but paused for a moment before resuming his work and spoke in a slightly deep, raspy voice, "I have no opinion on the young man."<br>"Oh come on, everyone-"  
>"My work is done," he heavily moaned as he pulled all his bulking body back onto his powerful legs. "Is there anything else you require of my services?"<br>Rose looked at the sad, lonely form in front of her; there wasn't a part of him that wasn't clothed in leather or fur skin, and he had enough dirt on him to cover an entire wheat field.  
>"No, we are perfectly fine, thank you," Rose replied. The bunched over figure gave a small tip of his head, which seemed like the only bow he could muster without letting his huge, bent form from falling. He gave one last, pining stare at Rose before he heavily lumbered out the barely big enough door and back towards his lone shack deep in the woods.<br>Rose turned back to her friends as the woodcutter closed the heavy door behind him, "Have you noticed how much mail Terry has brought back from the city for him?"  
>"I did and I do believe his name is Tom," Cogsworth replied in a clipped tone.<br>"No, no, no it's Terence," Lumier inputted.  
>"No, that's not right either, it's Todd" Chip interceded.<br>"It doesn't matter what his name is!" Rose quickly grabbed a fresh cup from the small, high standing, polished waiter table beside her. "The point is Daniel must have dozens of friends to be receiving so much mail. Personally, I don't understand how anyone could possibly enjoy his company."  
>"They are most certainly all miscreants of the same caliber." Cogsworth waved his hand towards Mrs. Potts looking down at his empty tea cup.<br>Rose took another sip of her tea. "Which is why I don't see how we can expect him to learn anything when he's still associating with people as horrible as he is?"  
>Mrs. Potts went around the small circle again, carefully refilling any empty porcelain cups; she sighed before her sweet, wise voice caught the attention of everyone around the room.<br>"We'll just have to hope that the reminders of what he once had will help him want to be the gentleman he is meant to be, after all: the quicker he behaves, the quicker he can leave."  
>the small gathering nodded in agreement, before they slowly disbanded to continue their daily chores. <p>

******************************************************************************

"Damn, ungrateful, little son of a bitch!" Daniel threw down the latest letter he had opened; it wasn't two seconds before his fingers snatched up another. He ripped it open ferociously and read about three sentences before it too ended up on the floor next to his useless, broken Droid Premium phone.  
>Any hope for rescue was continuing to grow slimmer as the pile of unopened letters dwindled, and the pile next to, around, and in the garbage can slowly, but undoubtedly grew larger. He had written to everyone he could think of with a plea for release, an escape, any chance of a-get-away plan; but no one gave a salvation call in any of their replies, not one letter contained any chance for freedom.<br>He continued this sad charade for hours, he slummed onto his bed as the sun was sinking behind the dark, reach less mountains; grabbing the last note, small white note hidden deep underneath all the pointless letters on his polished, wooden desk. His eyes weakly lit up as he saw the black ink spell the name, **JOE**.  
>his fingers started to shake, he tiredly tore open the small envelope, delicately opening the folded up piece of paper, savoring but quickly scanning through his friend's ramblings about his parties and latest 'conquests', he wished he could be with his friends again; feeling his heart start to sting from the longing for his old life. Daniel slowed as he reached the second page as Joe's writing became more relevant.<br>**"It sounds like you're in some deep shit. I really wish I could help you out, but I'm really busy right now. I mean, its tourist season and I have managed to find some nice little American girl every single night this week. Besides that, I'm a little low on cash right now and your parents made a better offer than you did. You wouldn't want to cause your best bud to have to give all that up right? Besides, you should look on the bright side: you can always make some fun of your own with that girl you wrote about. She sounded like a real hot piece of-"  
><strong>Daniel jumped up, crumpled the paper, and threw it across the room; his skin only grew hotter as the pile of crumbled papers fell and spread all over the floor. He started to pace across the deep blue colored carpet, working himself into a fury. His cheeks started to burn and his nostrils flared, his frustration levels we're reaching their blazing climax.  
>How dare his friends abandon him like this? After all he had done for them? After all the money and power he had given them?<br>His anger crept and burned into his throat, his voice turned venomous and disdainful as he yelled into the mirror, "Those useless gits wouldn't even be on high street if it wasn't for me! They owe me everything! I'm Daniel Stuart! The richest person in Kingston, I nursed and paid for them better than the queen could do Prince Charles! Those lousy no good mongrels, they wouldn't have a different girl every week if it wasn't for me! Well when I get back they won't even have a chance to sod off when I'm through with them! I'll-"  
>Daniel turned to see a silent, stone faced Ted standing in the door way. Ted's butler outfit was also half-in half, one side with deep black material and grey, shining buttons, while the other was silky white with dull, black buttons. He held up Daniel's dinner on the expensive, wavy serving dish. His eyes remained unchanged behind his thin, circle glasses.<br>"Sir," he paused, "do you need any other assistance besides your dinner? A shrink perhaps?",  
>"What do you want?" Daniel growled.<br>"I'm just bringing your dinner sir, as you instructed."  
>Daniel walked over, his lips curled as he slowly pricked his finger along the smooth, silver lid. His fingers firmly grabbed the small handle, his stomach growled as the steam and vapors from his cooked salty lobster reached his nose. He could smell the tangy butter, and strong lemons; his mouth started to salivate in his cheeks, but he looked up to see Ted's brown eyes, within the small, amber spheres he could see the smallest flickers of mockery.<br>Anger instantly returned and combusted in his chest. He slammed the lid down, raising his hand into the air,  
>"You call this food? My old-dead-great grandmother could cook better than that! Take it back until you can do it right!"<br>Ted just gave a small nod, his eyes slightly glistening as he replied. "Yes sir, right away." Daniel turned his eyes blazing, "didn't you hear me! You worthless bag of horse puck! I said-"  
>"yes sir, you want another lobster cooked up right away, I will tell the chief."<br>"Forget the lobster! I want a double pounder hamburger with cheese and bacon and-"  
>"sir," Ted looked at Daniel; his eyes seemed to brim with a deeper sense, his voice changed as if to an old, kind grandfather comforting an angry child as he smiled. "Is there anything you want to talk about?"<br>Daniel just stared, he tried to sputter and cough up more harsh words to insult Ted with, but his heart began to throb, and his blood began to cool. He sighed heavily as he fell back onto his bed, his throat stung but he forced himself to speak.  
>"Ted what the bloody hell am I doing here?"<br>Ted gently set the heavy dinner plate on the small stand beside the bed. His eyes continued to brim with inner wisdom, but his voice remained silent once again. Daniel just turned over, trying to hide his brimming eyes from the man beside him.  
>"I mean, Ted I've been here for three weeks. I thought Jane would have blown the whole murder investigation away already."<br>Ted's eyes moved over to the fallen, scattered pile of crumbled up papers, a small chuckle came to his lips before he looked back at Daniel  
>"looks like you had other plans."<br>"It was supposed to be the backup plan, my friends wouldn't be anywhere without me; but they won't even help me out of this stupid, crazy place filled with the biggest bunch of morons I've ever seen."  
>"These people are trying to help you sir, in order for you to leave you must-"<br>"yea, yea, yea I know: behave. Ted I will not let my parents win, they just want me to be exactly like Eric, the favorite; that why they've ditched me off to places like this my entire life, nothing this secluded, but a prison nonetheless."  
>Ted remained silent; he silently stood and didn't even whisper a goodbye as he left the room.<p> 


	8. Chapter 8

The sun's rays were barely starting to prick and shine through the high glass ceiling; the rays traveled and bounced soft gold around the grey, stone walled courtyard that served as Rose's greenhouse.  
>The plants continued to hungrily reach up to touch those rich, gilded gleams. The soft, growing warmth helped the array of flowers flourish all year long, within the walls they were protected from winter's cold, skeletal fingers. Rose was spending more and more time tending the soft, delicate roses, lilies, and dragon poppies as an escape from the ever more smothering rooms of the castle.<br>She looked out the broad, warming windows. Her eyes gazed out into the lush, vibrant forest; countless trees pushed towards the sky: there lively green leaves seemed to have small whispering voices in the wind. She craved to be outside, hungered for freedom away from this place. Her fingers touched the warm glass, looking down at the bridge that led into the unknown.  
>But the woods were off limits without any male escort, and ever since Daniel had arrived in her home all of the possible attendants were too busy watching him to keep an eye on her; she smiled, knowing it would take all the men in this place to keep Daniel under wraps. This normally would have seemed like a good thing; however, she had no chances to sneak away because all the females in the castle had made it their personal missions to watch her; and with all those flawless peering eyes, unlike the wandering eyes of Cogsworth and Lumier, she was officially under house arrest.<br>Rose looked up after patting down the soil around a newly transferred forget-me-nots and wiped the back of her hand on her forehead, causing some of the dark soil to create a long smudge on her flawless skin; she could see Madeline aimlessly dusting with a feather duster that was bigger than her face, as she cast furtive glances in Rose's direction to make sure she wasn't causing any mischief or doing anything that could harm her in the least.  
>Rose sighed; standing up she kicked the small wrinkles out of her hem before she walked over to a rust covered spigot, barely still attached to the stone wall; water continued to trickle out of its curved snout and out of the bottom curve where a single crack showed along its rusted edge. The water flowed into a small stream carved into the stone floor of the greenhouse. As she stood filling her watering can, her ears caught the sound of two people talking from the other side of the wall. She set the watering can down silently making sure not to let the bottom edge scratch against the stone floor.<br>She slowly breathed in the warm air as she snuck casually over to a small oval shaped window and leaned against the wall to listen.  
>She recognized the two voices of Gisabelle and Mrs. Potts; she gently placed her ear on the smooth glass to better hear the two gossip; placing her feet firmly on the stony ground before carefully leaning her body up against the wall, placing one hand on the floor and another on the window's edges to balance her.<br>Gisabelle's loud, rich voice echoed against the walls, "… And I heard Lumier telling Madeline that he heard from a trusted source that the butler is an undercover police man who is here to see if Daniel will admit to the crimes he committed."  
>"Oh nonsense," Mrs. Potts replied, "I am much more apt to believe what Chip overheard, that Tomas was once a troubled youth who has been brought in to help sympathize with Daniel, so the poor boy wouldn't feel as though everyone was against him."<br>"Oh I don't believe that. He is far too straight-laced to have ever been as troubled as Daniel. Speaking of which, did you hear that Daniel was sent here by his parents so he wouldn't spend all of their money on clothes?"  
>"Ridiculous, even you wouldn't be able to spend all of what he will be inheriting on clothes."<br>"Well, do you prefer the version Lumier told me: that Daniel came here to escape a rogue assassin hired to kill him after Daniel burnt down a billion-dollar hotel as a college prank?" Gisabelle started to raise her hand in the air, trying to shoo away a small, but pesky fly that kept buzzing around her nose.  
>"Now I have a hard time believing most of that," Mrs. Potts chided.<br>"Which part?" Gisabelle giggled.  
>"I would think it would be obvious: the assassin."<br>"I think you are correct; he is definitely, shall we say, disturbed enough to burn down a building. Of course, I also have a hard time believing he would ever go to any school refined enough to actually have pranks." Gisabelle countered and let out another chuckle.  
>"No doubt his schooling has been flawed; speaking of which, I have some tea to deliver to Belle in the Library, so I had best be on my way,"<br>"Yes, I also have some hemming to do. _Auv voiuw."_  
>Rose sighed as she heard the two gossipers walk away, she could no longer hide back the small frown on her lips before she turned and slid down the wall, putting her head back and closing her eyes. She was sick of all this talk of Daniel. He was providing more amusement for them than he seemed to be able to conjure up for himself; her head shook, how could anyone accomplish so much attention if they remained tucked away in their room, alone, not saying one word for days at a time?<br>"Why doesn't he just die in there?" she whispered to herself out loud as she started to rub her pulsing temples, "and make my life easier?"  
>"No one I know I hope,"<br>rose felt her spine jump, she looked up to find a very pleased, cocky faced Daniel looking down at her. she winced, he was dressed in some kind of lose, blue material for pants, with a short sleeved, black shirt covered in white and grey lines placed around an image of four faces that looked like spiked hair men holding strange instruments, with white, terribly slanted words above them saying "Rock Loud Rock Hard!" Her eyes only narrowed as he laughed.  
>"Ha! You should have seen the look on your face! It looked like my three year old niece!"<br>Rose quickly stood, her lips twitched as she struggled to maintain a disciplinary form; she calmly started to walk away but her blood only heated as Daniel followed her. Her fingers started to tic, counting down the seconds she had to spend with this incompetent _Abruti_.  
>Only soft padding followed behind her, she looked down and nearly gasped, Daniel was wearing dirty, unwashed, brown stained socks on his feet. She couldn't believe how impertinent this boy was, walking around the hard, stone floored castle only in socks?<br>Daniel just smiled; he playfully skipped in front of her quickly grabbing one of the granite pillars. He spun around and around, flexing his shoulders and upper arm muscles as rose passed; his eyes dulled as she didn't respond.  
>Rose gave a small shirk as she passed, "where are your escorts?" she asked.<br>"I lost them easily, those two are thicker than my grandma's fruit cake."  
>Rose scoffed as she held her head high "well if you excuse me," she sighed "I'm going to the library to meet chip."<br>"oh your boyfriend." Daniel snickered.  
>"Absolutely not, my relationship with chip is completely non- quixotic."<br>Rose's eyes wandered, she couldn't see any of her escorts, Madeline was gone, Mrs. Potts was gone, and the only one with her was Daniel. She felt the color flush from her cheeks, she grimaced. "_Oh no!" _her mind screamed. "_I'm completely alone with him!" _sweat started to build on her hands, she heard Daniel take a step closer to her.  
>Daniel watched as rose just stood there, he grinned, "<em>please," <em>he thought. "_Did you actually think I wouldn't also get rid of your escorts?" _the grin only widened as his mind flashed to the mess just down the long hall and up two flights of stairs. His discernments instantly became playful as he said, "you're just playing hard to get aren't you?"  
>"Excuse me?"<br>"I mean, that's quite alright _mademoiselle_, but you know that this sweet yet childish game we're playing must inevitably cease at some point. Why doesn't my little girl end it now, and come back to my warming embrace?"  
>"You really are an imbecile, any woman in her right mind would never fall or be charmed by an ignorant, selfish, pig-headed fool like you."<br>"Oh sweetheart, isn't that a bit harsh? After all,"  
>Daniel swung his arm around Rose softly tittering as he pulled her in close; Rose immediately pushed against his chest trying to get free, but she stopped as his hand only tightened on her waist. Daniel laughed roguishly and pulled her in even closer, he didn't notice Rose's raising hand as he put his lips close to hers, "since those two lap dogs aren't around we can get to know each other a little bet-"<br>A loud smack echoed in the green house, followed by ranting screams of a very upset, insulted teenage boy.  
>"BLOODY HELL!"<br>Daniel cradled his swollen cheek and his wounded pride as he backed away. After a few seconds of rubbing his sore cheek he looked at rose, his face bright red with embarrassment more than anger. His eyes flashed, "What the hell was that for!" he shouted.  
>"What the Hel….heck do you think that was for you <em>Abruti?<em>" Rose spat.  
>"<em>Abruti?<em> I didn't do anything wrong!" He shot back.  
>"Didn't, do… Didn't do anything wrong! You're not supposed to be anywhere near me! I'm the princess! You're not even allowed to touch me!"<br>"I was just trying to give you a kiss! Shouldn't a princess receive a kiss by any of her guests?"  
>"I know what you're trying to do! I know who you are! You're a selfish, conceited, egoistic, narcissist! You go around preying on stupid, careless girls just to get your foul, revolting habit to feed your ostentatious craving for so called vain masculinity!"<br>Daniel raised his hand. His eyes were full of flames; he just stood there, his arm just waiting to take a strike at the insolent girl in front of him. All the color went out of Rose's cheeks; Daniel felt something stab deep inside of him as he saw fear starting to teem in her eyes. For a few more breathless seconds, the pair stood still in frozen stance.  
>Daniel's fingers twitched and then slowly lowered with his hand back to his side. His temples still pounded in anger. His voice had turned foreboding as he spoke, "you… you don't know anything about me. You don't know me… so just keep your mouth shut!"<br>"Well, I do know that you can't do a penny's worth of work." Rose scoffed, "I mean, don't you ever think of anyone but yourself? Poor Thomas-"  
>"You mean Ted."<br>"Whatever-his-name is completely worn to the bone every day! Always picking up after you, your nothing more than a bratty child."  
>"Well excuse me, princess, I don't see you do any work, so you have no room to talk!"<br>"I do plenty of work around here! In fact, I was just tending to my flowers before you rudely interrupted me, which, for your information, has made me late for my chess game with Chip."  
>Rose glared as she started to walk past. Daniel firmly grabbed her arm; Rose's eyes met his, and something hotter than an electric current shocked around the room. Daniel merely scoffed as he let go. "It doesn't matter." He jeered, "I'm your guest, and I shouldn't have to do anything. If I want to gain thirty pounds and drool on my bed, then bloody hell I will."<br>Rose paused and thought for a moment. Daniel's cocky smile stretched across his whole face. He started to proudly walk away, but stopped as he saw Rose's eyes change from disappointment, to thought, to an idea. A chill ripped through his spine; he felt the smallest beads of sweat break on his forehead. Rose let a small, sly smile curve her delicate lips before she looked at Daniel's lightening cheeks.  
>Her voice turned cool, "Well sense you've mentioned you're so called authority," she grinned, "and since I'm the princess as you've soundly proclaimed, then the rules of you staying here are going to change."<br>Rose just continued to smile as she watched Daniel's face turn from a proud, cunning lion to a wide-eyed, petrified, puppy dog.  
>"So…" she lulled. "…you are going to work here for the remainder of stay."<br>Daniel's face flushed red, "whoa, wait a second I didn-"  
>"Which means that you will help my servants pick up your messes."<br>"Now wait one bloody se-"  
>"You will work when I work, and are only allowed to rest when I'm no longer doing my chores,"<br>"Hey, this is totally-"  
>"fair? I know, glad you agree. So I will expect you up no later than six o'clock tomorrow morning."<br>"And if I don't get up?" Daniel fumed, flaring his nostrils.  
>"Well I understand our woodcutter has excellent means to get people to do what they are supposed to do," Rose chimed innocently and turned to walk away, a small smile playing at her lips.<br>"Wait," Daniel started, "If I do agree to these 'terms-'"  
>"Agree?" Rose interrupted, "did I not make it clear you have no choice?"<br>"Fine, yes, I get that, but wouldn't it be more," Daniel paused for a second as he tried to think of a word to convince Rose, "effective to just keep it between the two of us."  
>"How <em>exactly<em> would that be more effective, pray tell?" Rose questioned.  
>"Well, it would, um, it would."<br>"Save your pride," Rose went straight to the point.  
>"Of course not-" Daniel wilted under Rose's glare.<br>Rose gave a triumphal smile, "Alright, we can keep it between us. However, you should be warned, I can be just as forceful as any of my friends," Rose started to walk away and called over her shoulder, "by the way; I think you might want to have Jed give you some ice for your face."  
>Daniel's face flushed scarlet as he called after her, "His name is Ted!"<br>Rose didn't look back, Daniel felt his heart turn to ice; this obnoxious girl thought that she could order him around and was so naïve to believe it. He slightly turned as he heard Cogsworth and Lumier's quick paced footsteps echoing up the stairs.  
><em>"Looks like I'm discovered." <em>He thought before casually strolling and prancing his feet in a self-pleased dance. His eyebrows lifted, Cogsworth angry voice vibrated against the upper floor's walls bouncing down the stone, red carpet stairs.  
>"Lumier you fool! You have lost track of the delinquent!"<br>"Cogsworth he couldn't have gone far."  
>"That's what I get for putting my faith in a waxy-eared, devil-may-care-"<br>"Now see here you, you old grandfather clock!"  
>Daniel just listened as crashes and shouting ensued. slowly slinking his way back to his bedroom, his mind racing with any methods to get rid of the princess's, over rated punishment.<br>_"What do I do? If I disobey her I'll get ax chopped by that humped over giant. She's too ornery to compromise; she's ill-tempered and hot- headed, and…and..."  
><em>His feet started to drag along the blue carpet, he passed the squished, and floor faced Cogsworth and black eyed Lumier. He didn't even turn his head to acknowledge their confounded, drop-mouthed faces as he opened the door to his room and shut it softly behind him leaving the overly-injured, completely stumped gentlemen staring wide-eyed at the non-abused door.  
>******************************************************************************<p>

The sun seemed to barely rise over the forest covered mountains, the castle remained silent. The air was shallow and crisp. Only the sound of soft, padded steps barely echoed two feet from their owner on the third hall.  
>Rose gently scraped her fingers on the silver handle to Daniel's room; her feet allowed her to be a shadow in the night, flawlessly creeping over to the shade covered windows which blocked out the morning sun. Her lips curved into a small smile as she grabbed the soft, light blue sashes before looking back at the limp body soundly sleeping in the bed four feet from her.<br>The sun's light barely touched and licked the blur carpet underneath the heavy sashes. Rose jerked them back quicker than lightning striking down on a mountain.  
>Her smile widened, she waited for the young man to jump out of bed in absolute dismay, but her hopes sunk with her disappointment. The only sound to come from the motionless, bunked up mass was a soft moan, before it turned over to rest on the other side away from the light.<br>"Come on Daniel." She fumed as she walked over and grabbed his blanket. "I meant what I said now get up."  
>Rose pulled back the blanket; she immediately gasped and covered her eyes at the sight of Daniel lying in bed with nothing but black and red striped boxers.<br>"Hey." Daniel spat as he groggily sat himself up, "what are you doing?"  
>"What are you... not wearing?" Rose sputtered, "Where is your nightshirt, or at least your… trousers?"<br>"Nightshirt?" Daniel slurred sleepily as he tried to lift his heavy, half –asleep form off the bed. "Well bloody hell, I could just be wearing briefs for crying out loud."  
>"wait there's wor….never mind I don't need my mind to be stained any further. It's time for you to get up." Rose firmly kept her hand to her eyes as she made her way to the door, her fingers groped friskily for the doorknob, "and make sure to put on some decent attire before you attempt to leave this room."<br>Daniel muttered under his breath as he watched Rose open the door and step through, then he laid back down.  
>"And, as a courtesy, may I remind you who shall be retrieving your lethargic self if you so choose to allow yourself to go back to sleep," and Rose left the room and closed the door with a loud snap as Daniel grumpily hauled himself out of bed and started putting on his clothes; the memory of the burly woodcutter haunting his actions.<br>Thirty minutes later, Daniel stumbled into the kitchen and looked around at all the surprised faces which greeted him. Cogsworth had his mouth wide open as porridge slowly slurped off his raised spoon into his half-empty bowl and Chip watched him suspiciously, no doubt wondering what ulterior motives could provoke Daniel to be up at such an early hour.  
>"Uh… hi," Daniel tried and immediately regretted it as Lumier jumped up to shake his hand.<br>"Well, bonjour, Daniel. What a… pleasant and unexpected surprise." Lumier managed and dragged him to an empty chair, "Chip, could you please get some porridge for our guest?"  
>Chip gave a mutinous expression but Rose elbowed him slightly, and he grudgingly left to get the food.<br>"So, Daniel, what brings you down from your perch so early this fine morning?" Lumier sat in the next chair and leaned over intently.  
>"I was just… having a difficult time sleeping," Daniel attempted to deter the question.<br>"What? Are our beds not comfortable enough for you?" Chip huffed as he forcefully dropped Daniel's bowl on the table, spilling some of the hot porridge onto Daniel's hand in the process. Daniel yanked back his hand and quickly wiped off the gooey residue on his napkin without saying a word; not wanting Chip to feel the satisfaction of his long awaited pay-back from his crack-joke about his mother.  
>"Try not to bruise him up too badly chip," rose said casually as she sipped her morning tea, "he's got work to do."<br>Chip sneered, "From what I can tell…" chip said before smugly pointing to Daniel's swollen cheek. "… Looks like someone has already beaten me to It."  
>"Daniel?" Lumier questioned. "Where is your attendant? You know Travis?"<br>"You mean Ted?" Daniel groaned rubbing his cheek. "He's off for the day, he has to go get my mail and other things back in Paris."  
>"Well you need to get some cold water or ice for that <em>cheek<em> of yours." Lumier laughed.  
>After painfully eating breakfast Daniel followed Rose into the greenhouse courtyard. He just scoffed as Rose handed him a pair of dirt covered gloves and apron. Without turning back Rose handed him an empty silver pot. Daniel ran his fingers down the smooth edge, seeing his foggy reflection in its dull surface.<br>His attention was quickly drawn back as Rose spoke, "Now your first chore is as follows:" she instructed as she pulled a huge bag of dirt towards him. "You are to fill all of the flowering pots three- quarters full. Assuming you do it right, you should be able to finish by noon, at which time I shall return and give you your next undertaking."  
>Daniel watched as she started towards the east side of the room, "what pots?" he sneered to himself. His foot softly hit something as he stepped back. He slowly turned and felt his blood pressure start to rise and build as over fifty empty pots came into his hidden view behind him. Over the next few hours, Daniel poorly filled the pots, dirt covering over half the floor, and some pots cracking when he knocked them over in his anger.<br>Rose's next task was far more laborious, Daniel was forced to patch up some flaking tiles on top of the fifth tower. It wasn't long, however, before he was excused to go to the infirmary when he half nailed his finger to the roof. He then had to skip lunch as he was forced to help the nurse clean his mess and then finish fixing the roof.  
>Rose thankfully, allowed him to retire after dinner. Daniel felt sore from his spiked head down to his holed socks; he calmly soothed his mind with ideas of <em>"well, I proved myself. She'll leave me alone now." <em>And _"she's probably done with her silly game; I'll be able to do what I want tomorrow."  
><em>Daniel painfully pulled his blankets over him, hoping that the warmth would relieve his pulsing muscles as he fell into a deep sleep.  
>Rose, however, was up all the earlier the next morning. Daniel made the mistake of putting two pillows over his ears, deafening the noise of scratching metal across the stone floor outside his room. Rose carefully hefted the large, water filled, metal can above her waist.<br>"Rise and shine!" she shouted. Daniel's eyes instantly widened, but it was too late to dodge the incoming water and ice cubes as Rose dumped the can over him. Daniel screamed in shock and surprise. He jumped from the bed and ran to the farthest corner, rubbing his shaking arms together. He felt more than cold water flood into his cheeks. His pride began to sting as his teeth chattered together, "w, w, w, w, w, what the b, b, b, b, bloody hell was that for?"  
>"Oh nothing," Rose smiled. "I thought you might just need some more ice for your cheek; it appears to still be red." She turned to leave but paused at the door to add, "I hate to rush you, however, assuming you want breakfast, you need to dress yourself and hurry down."<br>Daniel tried to calm down, hoping today would be better, but his temper only rocketed with all of Rose's shouts, commands, and chores she forced him to do, such as: take out the kitchen scraps, sweep the paths in the greenhouse, and help Chip in the horse stalls, where chip inexorably completed his pay back buy _accidently _dropping a pail full of horse treats on Daniel's head.  
>At the end of the day, Daniel morosely made his way up to his room, ignoring the snickering faces and chuckles from Cogsworth and Lumier as he failed to wipe some horse waste off his forehead.<br>He went into his side bathroom. His blistered fingers stung as he touched the cool sink knobs above the bathing tub. He gently traced its smooth outer rim, trying to forget the pain he was feeling as he looked down at the clawed feet of the tub. He slowly put his fingers into the cold running water waiting for some heat. The water continued to flow, but it never grew warmer.  
>He turned off the water when the tub was half full and carefully pulled off all his ruined, dirt stained clothes and froze at the tubs edge. His stomach leapt into his mouth as invisible, icy snakes slithered up his spine. His hand throbbed as he brushed the cold water, and he reluctantly entered the cold, homemade pool.<br>The next hour was coldly spent wiping the dirt off his skin and pulling small, stubborn clumps from his hair. As he stepped out the white towels under him began to be dripped on with brown water, he quickly but cautiously grabbed another dry towel without further injuring his blisters.  
>He looked back at the filth inside the tub, not even sighing as he pushed down the small, silver lever.<br>He left the crowded room as the tub slowly drained the russet water. His legs started to shake from the lack of rest. The last thing he felt was the embrace of soft pillows and blankets as he fell on his unmade bed.  
>The next morning Rose got up just as earlier. Her lips slightly grinned from the thought of her next slight prank she was going to pull on the sleeping, unaware, lazy victim on the third floor. Her fingers hungrily pricked the edge of the white door. She gingerly opened till a small crack showed light coming from the room.<br>She froze, seeing a shadow sweep from the light then disappear. There was a soft bump, then a groan; she peered through the small crack, her eye widened as she saw who was creating the shadow. She dropped the paintbrush and black paint cup she had been carrying, for inside the bedroom Daniel was grudgingly pulling on his clothes. She quickly turned and backed against the wall, her eyes blinking trying to believe the image still frozen in her mind.  
><em>"He's awake?" <em>she inhaled, _"And not only is he awake he's almost dressed?"  
><em>Rose felt herself jump, the door opened wide, and Daniel's shadow stopped stretching out across the floor and to the adjacent wall. His feet stopped at the dropped paintbrush and spilled paint on the floor; Rose's heart leapt and choked her throat like a swelling balloon as she heard Daniel laugh.  
>"Why, princess," he sniggered. "You'll have to do better than that."<br>Daniel smugly walked out of his room, passing a stunned princess vainly hiding against the wall. He only smiled, feeling Rose flinch from her wounded pride as he walked down the stairs towards the kitchen.  
>Rose felt too shocked and ashamed to eat breakfast and slowly walked down to her greenhouses to begin her chores, but she stopped in shock at the door. Her cheeks grew hot from sight of Daniel kneeling in the dirt, transplanting the lilies she had set out the night before. She hid behind the door's corner and watched for a moment, noticing the way Daniel tenderly picked up the delicate flowers, careful to protect the roots, before placing them gently in the hole and patting the dirt up around them. Rose felt a twinge of regret when she noticed him flinch in pain as he picked up the trowel to dig another hole. She sighed in resignation and slowly walked up, knelt beside him, grabbed a lily, and flinched before she slowly held out the small, bare rooted plant to a very surprised Daniel.<br>Daniel managed to control his amazement and said as he took the plant with his bandaged hands, "Well, princess, I knew you'd fall for me sometime."  
>Rose simply rolled her eyes at his gibe. She grabbed the trowel scraping the stone floor next to Daniel's knee from and started digging holes along the path. Daniel silently watched her for a moment then started placing lilies along his row.<br>After a moment Rose broke the silence, "So, may I ask why you aren't at breakfast?"  
>Daniel paused. "Just wasn't hungry,"<br>"So," Rose sat back and said, "in other words: you didn't want to deal with Lumier and Cogsworth having fun at your expense."  
>Daniel thought about denying it as he planted the last lily in its hole, but realized it was pointless, "Yea, basically, so," Daniel wiped his hands on his apron, "why are <em>you<em> missing breakfast?"  
>"I didn't feel very hungry either," Rose looked up and saw Daniel's raised eyebrow. She sighed and added, "I was too…"<br>"Impressed?" Daniel supplied.  
>"Surprised," Rose corrected, "and somewhat… apologetic," Daniel raised both eyebrows now, and Rose quickly clarified, "about the way I have been waking you in the morning. That is all. I found I had been lowering myself to your level of maturity, and it was unacceptable for someone of my stature to do so." Rose stood and dusted her hands off on her skirt.<br>Daniel stood up beside her, "oh naturally, I wouldn't expect a 'princess' to understand how to do a practical joke correctly."  
>"Thank you-" Rose stopped herself, "wait, that was an insult, wasn't it?"<br>"Pretty much," Daniel laughed.  
>Rose picked up some of the gardening tools and started walking to the shed, she opened the hand carved wooden door before Daniel also grabbed the remainder of the garden tools and followed her.<br>"So how many letters did Matt bring you this time?" Rose asked.  
>"Um… well," Daniel stalled.<br>"What? Did he forget to pick up your mail?"  
>"No, he remembered my mail," Daniel sighed, "I just didn't have … any."<br>"You didn't have any?" Rose questioned.  
>"Well, I'm sure my friends are all really busy with parties and-and stuff," Daniel trailed off, and Rose could tell it bothered him more than he was trying to let on.<br>"Well, if it helps you feel better," Rose said gingerly, "I have never received any letters."  
>"Really? You don't even get emails and stuff?"<br>"What are emails?"  
>" 'What are-' never mind, don't you have any friends in the city?"<br>"No."  
>"Didn't you go to school?"<br>"No."  
>"Church, anything?"<br>"No."  
>"Did you share an apartment building?"<br>"What's an apartment building?"  
>"How the bloody hell do you not know what an apartment building is? Don't you ever leave this filthy prison?"<br>Rose suddenly tensed. Daniel blinked as he saw a distant look in her eyes. He felt a small twinge twist inside him; his breathing stopped as the smallest slivers of tears began to brim Rose's eyes. She quickly turned and brushed her brimming eyes. Her voice promptly turned stern and authoritative as she briskly walked away from him "I think you should finish up here." She slightly snapped. "I have some other things I need to attend to."  
>Daniel continued to stare even after she had disappeared out the iron doors. His mind spun with ideas of why rose could possibly act that way. He slowly started to pick up the last small combihoe, but stopped as one, totally rash thought wedged deep into his mind:<br>_"what if she really hasn't left this place?" _


	9. Chapter 9

The woodcutter lumbered along the ground floor, his strong arms carrying twelve, huge logs that weighed more than ten Cogsworth's. he heavily groaned as he knelt down to his fifth fire place, but didn't even creak or crumble as he used one hand to place two logs, and the other to still hold the remaining ten. He straightened as much as his hunched back allowed him and turned around when he heard two people coming down the hallway, slowly lumbering up to the door.  
>His cold eyes cautiously peeked out the slightly opened door just in time to see Rose and Daniel pass by on their way to wash the lower ground windows; their hands struggling to cling to all of the cleaning supplies.<br>His eyes didn't even blink as he watched Daniel speak into the princess's ear, the comment was clearly funny as Rose laughed in reply before nudging Daniel with her elbow causing him to spill some of the water from the wobbling, wooden bucket that was quickly slipping from his already over filled fingers.  
>The woodcutter gave one last, spying glare, then thinly smiled before lugging away behind another door just as Rose and Daniel rounded the adjacent corner.<br>"Well, she's sure keeping him busy," the woodcutter mused to himself, the sound of their laughter still echoing behind a wooden, steel barred door that led into the dungeon area of the castle, "Speaking to each other for three weeks without a break, and he's still letting her push him around. I surely wouldn't ever be a slave to a pathetic female."  
>Down in the depths the hulking woodcutter disappeared, but still in the ground hall Rose's laughter could be heard resonating throughout the castle.<br>"Why exactly do castles have such big windows anyways?" Daniel mockingly complained; a rag in one hand and a full bucket of water in the other as he carefully climbed the rickety ladder, steadily pulling his way up to the very top of the biggest, stained-glass window. The colors bled onto him like shadows in the morning son. His shirt looked splashed with shiny paint as he began to clean the first slate.  
>Rose just smiled from below, "So you could have something to whine about," she laughed. Her amber eyes looked up at him warmly. She could see the faintest hint of a smile on his face from the ground where she was scrubbing the lower placed, stained, circular window. The colors were a mix of pinks, and reds that formed a rose with a dark green stem.<br>Daniel desperately clung to the shaky ladder, his heart pounding as he kept looking back down to the white, polished floor. "Ha, ha, very funny," He pouted.  
>He delicately placed the bucket in front of his chest; ringing out his rag over and over as the window became cleaner, more color and light seemed to glow throughout the hall, sending a flashing brilliance of oranges, reds, greens, yellows, and blues from the mural inside the stain glass. A perfect colored silhouette mirrored on the polished floor, an image of the outer view of the castle surrounded by miles of forest emulated like sun on water.<br>Daniel looked into his wooden water pail; the water had turned almost as brown as the water from one of his run off baths.  
>Small droplets of water dripped down from his damp rag. Daniel looked down at Rose; she quietly hummed to herself as she continued to wash the smaller windows below him, right below him. His old mischievous smile came springing back, he naughtily glanced at his bucket, his finger pricking the top of the edges, his grin only widening and becoming more cheeky.<br>"You know, Princess," he said slightly licking his lips, his fingers itching with anticipation before starting to grip the bucket's soaked edges. "I think you look slightly parched, want a drink?"  
>"No, I'm not thirsty at al-aaagh!" Rose screamed as the cascade of cold, muddied water flooded over her head.<br>"Never mind," Daniel raucously laughed, "You look much better now!"  
>"I am going to have you whipped, Abruti!" Rose yelled up at him.<br>Daniel laughed again when he reached the bottom, feeling some relieve that he was off the unsafe ladder. Rose stood there gapping, her shock still gripping a hold of her at the thought of knowing that she was soaked in dirty, wash water. She continued to stand there, water dripped from her sopping hair onto the white tiled floor. Suddenly, Rose turned and threw her bucket of water directly into his face. Daniel gagged as he tasted dirt and grime that started to flood and drip down his throat.  
>"Don't you think you should wear a bathing suit if you want to swim?" Rose said, smirking.<br>"Well, princess, give me one minute and I'll go get my suit." Daniel managed to say while trying to spit out as much grime as he could off his tounge.  
>"I don't think you should bother," Rose replied as she picked up her supplies and started walking away, "It defeats the point to swim and then change."<br>Daniel quickly grabbed his cleaning items and jogged to catch up, "I think we should."  
>"Should what?" Rose asked looking into his soaked face.<br>"Go swimming?" Daniel responded, "Come on it would be fun."  
>"No thank you," Rose replied, "Besides there isn't any place to swim inside the grounds."<br>"Well, we could always take a little trip to Paris-"  
>"No," Rose immediately interrupted, her eyes flashing dangerously.<br>Daniel automatically backtracked, having learned not to breach any talk of leaving the castle into the outside world during the last three weeks, he calmly took a step back, his smile returning to his face "the woods must have somewhere safe to swim. We could always go somewhere in there."  
>Rose contemplated this for a minute before responding, "I would never be allowed to swim out there… let alone with you."<br>"Ok than let's just go for a hike." Daniel watched Rose's face closely, trying to decide her feelings, "My cabin fever has reached its max. If I don't go somewhere outside of these gates soon, I will go insane like my uncle Richard; and it will be a very bad thing if that happens."  
>"It's not that I don't want to," Rose said trying to keep her annoyance out of her voice, her eyes shyly looking out the nearest window, "however, I know we wouldn't be allowed to go. Besides, it wouldn't be enjoyable with my chaperone there."<br>"So we ditch the chaperone and go alone," Daniel suggested he could see Rose liked the idea but she wasn't convinced; he slowly swooned around her, pacifying his voice and waiting for her eyes to come to his own. "Come on," he egged on, "we could go in the morning before anyone else even woke up. It would be fun."  
>Rose paused, Daniel watched as her fingers twitched nervously. He couldn't help but smile, he could see in her eyes that she wanted to agree with him. He looked back at her hand, his own fingers started to twitch, he felt his chest start to get hot. Timidly his fingers started to reach for hers, but in that exact moment his hopes were dashed like a diving bird crashed into a thirty foot, thick cement wall, "No, no we can't." Rose rushed. "It wouldn't be right to disobey my parents in such an outright manner."<br>"Oh come on-" Daniel started.  
>"Look," Rose cut him off again and stopped walking, "We both require baths and perhaps some nourishment, so for now I shall say <em>au revoir<em>."  
>Daniel stood there alone; he could only feel his heart sink in a deep disappointment. His fingers unconsciously dropped everything he carried as he watched Rose walk up the stairs toward her bedroom.<br>*****************************************************************************When Rose reached her bedroom, she went straight to her bathroom, had a hot bath, wrapped a long robe around her, then rushed Mrs. Potts out the door the moment she grabbed her tea, she found her mother waiting for her, sitting erectly on her bed where she always was when she was cross or concerned about something. Rose paused for a moment before walking up to her dressing table, ignoring her mother completely.  
>"I need to talk to you," Belle said after a moment of watching Rose brush her hair, her hand briskly padded beside her, "come sit by me."<br>Rose sighed, rolling her eyes before moving to the bed and looking at her mom. "What is it, mamam?"  
>"I understand you are spending a lot of time with our… guest."<br>"Mamam, I would be most appreciative if you would be outright with me on the reason for your intrusion into my chambers." Rose pushed through her choking throat, she knew her mother noticed that she was annoyed, but she continued to keep like she was going about her own business rather than give in to her mother's complaints.  
>"Very well," Belle stood and faced Rose, "I absolutely forbid you from leaving the view of one of our household while alone with the young man. You are under direct orders from your father and me to never go into the forest, or anywhere alone with him at any time."<br>"Wait," Rose snapped, her voice rising along with her blood pressure, "how did you know I was thinking of going into the forest with him."  
>"Dear, it hardly matte-" Belle coaxed with her warm voice trying to calm her daughter down.<br>Rose felt her cheeks start to boil, "Hardly matters'? You've been spying on me?"  
>"I do not believe a mother that's watching over her own child is-"<br>"Disregarding her privacy?" Rose furiously added.  
>"I am sorry you feel that way however," Rose started to interrupt but Belle raised her voice slightly to finish her sentence, Rose didn't dare to argue back when she saw her mother's eyes flash in anger, "however;" she continued, " it does not change the fact that you are not to accompany him anywhere alone."<br>Rose turned angrily, knowing she had no chance to change her mother's mind. She quickly unclenched her hands so her mother wouldn't notice her uncontrolled anger, then quickly swallowing her pride she turned back to her mother, her eyes cold and unreadable.  
>"I am sorry you misunderstood my intentions, but I am only thinking of your best interests." Belle said lowering her tone; Belle's eyes still didn't reduce their flames that still showed her inaptness through her cool voice. She walked over to the door, leaving the argument the way she always had, "We do love you, Rose, which is why I must insist on this ban."<br>Rose heard the door close behind her mother.  
>Throwing herself onto her bed she quickly grabbed her thickest pillow and screamed in frustration, she forced back the tears brimming in her eyes; the frustration of yet again losing her free choices always seemed to be stripped away from her as she was beginning to learn how to use those choices for herself after all these years. After a moment, Rose got up and looked in the mirror; her hair was half brushed and her dress was ruffled, exactly the look her mother would find unladylike. Belle's voice echoed a reprimand in her mind <em>"Rose! That is no way for a princess to present herself." <em>Rose watched her reflection; her eyes looked down to the brush, but then back up to the image in the mirror. Her burnt orange eyes burned brighter, she swiftly ran the brush through her messy hair, clipped it up with the golden, white diamond hair clip than walked out the door in search of Daniel.  
>*****************************************************************************The sun hadn't even rose above the dark purple hills to disperse the mist the next morning when Rose knocked softly on Daniel's door. She felt her spine twinge in concern at the look of Daniel's widest grin ever, as she opened the door. Daniel was sitting on his bed waiting for her, his eyes mirroring all the mischievous thoughts rampaging in his mind. He wore a light tan shirt decorated with white paint splashes, two back, silver rimmed belts that crossed his hips, and some high quality, baggy denim jeans, and to finish it off with some of his more low fashion looking pair of hiking boots with tan, furred rimmed interiors.<br>"Good you're ready," Rose said and wheeled in a tray from the hall laden with cold porridge, bread, and fresh milk from the two cows out in the stables.  
>Rose looked back nervously, praying that her mother steps would not be heard walking down the carpet covered stairs, or even worse her father's steps. "Would you please hurry with breakfast? The sun will be up soon."<br>"No problem princess," Daniel jumped up from the bed, only grabbing a spoon before he started eating with gusto. After a moment with his mouth almost dripping out porridge Daniel noticed Rose's lack of hiking materials she wore, he soon swallowed his heaping mouthful, "Aren't you going to get dressed?" he asked.  
>"What do you mean? I am dressed," Rose said and looked down at her brown dress.<br>"Heh, sorry, but there's no way are you going in that," Daniel set down his bread and started rummaging through his bag, "here, you can wear this." he said as he pulled out another pair of his jeans from the amass of clothes stuffed in his bag, followed by an old stained wrinkled up t-shirt.  
>Rose gulped down her bread, "Uh, what?"<br>"You can't wear a dress on a hike; you'll have _embarrassing_ moments," he grinned. "so wear these." Daniel insisted.  
>"I would never wear men's trousers ev-" Rose started indignantly.<br>"What?" Daniel teased. "are you afraid your mom will find out?"  
>Rose looked at Daniel for a minute; thoughts of what she was already going to do that day flashed through her mind, she decided that if she was going to do this than she was going to do it all the way, starting to fan the flames of teenage rebellion even further.<br>"Give me those," she grabbed the clothes from his hands and marched into his washroom, shutting the door behind her.  
>Daniel smiled to himself softly and continued to eat, he started to feel a buzzing feeling build in his chest After a few seconds, he heard Rose call softly from the bathroom, "um, Daniel, how do I tie the trousers?"<br>"Tie the-" Daniel muttered in disbelief, swallowing another bite of bread he called back to her, "you don't. You have to- wait do you have them on backward? The zipper goes in the front."  
>"What's a zipper?" Rose called back.<br>"How the Bloody hell do you not know what a zipper is?" Daniel exclaimed, exasperated.  
>"Look," Rose called back heatedly, "just tell me how to get them on!"<br>"Fine," Daniel put a hand to his head and tried to calm back down. Taking a deep breath he slowly replied, "Ok first thing: do you see the two pockets?"  
>"Yes."<br>"Ok, those go on the back."  
>"Ok."<br>"Now you have to latch the button and do up the zipper."  
>"How exactly do I do that?"<br>"Just, uh, pull up on the little latch… thing," Daniel was ready to simply give up on her when he heard the door open slowly behind him. He flipped around and stared, Rose stood in the open doorway; a sheepish expression on her face showing the slightest bit of blushing on her cheeks. She was holding onto the jeans since they were threatening to fall down and the shirt was clearly too long for her small, thin frame.  
>Daniel felt his face continue to grow warmer the more he watched her. He felt himself smile to see her modestly dressed compared to all the other scantily clad females he was regularly around.<br>"I think they're too big." Rose said, interrupting his thoughts.  
>"Uh, yea… yea they are but we can, uh, we can fix that," Daniel stuttered as he rummaged through his bag and grabbed a thin, but sturdy black belt. Turning around he found her much closer than he had expected. His heart slightly stopped for a few seconds, and he quickly blinked before he held out the belt.<br>"Thanks," Rose said as she took the belt, "Now how does this work?"  
>"Well you put it… it goes through the straps," Daniel moved his hands animatedly, trying to describe what he meant, "oh sod it!" he started to reach towards her hips, but stopped as he saw her eyes blink in confusion. He softly coughed regaining himself, "Can I, uh…" he hesitated, "can I just… help you?" Daniel finally said and held up his hands for the belt.<br>Rose thought about it for just a moment, her brown eyes reflecting her racing thoughts. She bashfully looked away, but her voice whispered "Yea… I guess so."  
>Daniel took the belt and ran it tentatively through his hands before slowly reaching down and sliding it through her first belt loop.<br>Rose watched his hands intently; curiosity brewing on her face, but Daniel only blushed from the heat he felt coming off her breathing onto his clothes, quickly growing uncomfortable with his close proximity to her. He slowly walked around her as he finished looping the belt, his hands trying not to slip from the amount of sweat starting to build on them.  
>"So the leather goes through the little loops?" Rose asked making Daniel twitch just enough to drop the end of the belt he was holding.<br>"Uh yea," Daniel flustered, his legs began to feel shaky as he knelt down in front of her to do up the buckle.  
>"Thanks," Rose said when he finished pushing the small metal latch into a fitting hole. His heart hammered as he quickly walked over to the bed. His eyes stung from the pressure building in his chest. The weight pulled him down; he was soon sitting on top of the bed corner, breathing deeply trying to cool his heated body. He heard Rose take a step towards him, and he coughed to recompose himself and hide his flushed cheeks.<br>"Yea… no problem," Daniel said as he stood up. He turned around for a second still regaining his composure, trying not to think as to why he was having this reaction; he had seen woman with nothing on. Being able to touch every part of their skin without even flinching, but now he was acting like a crush struck thirteen year old sitting next to the cutest girl in class.  
>He turned back around to find Rose sitting on his bed. Her hands nimbly pulling on the pair of socks he had given her.<br>Daniel watched her for a moment; his thoughts suddenly seemed frozen as time followed suit. Soon, Daniel found himself walking over and kneeling in front of her; one of his hands reaching for her slender ankle and the other grabbed one of the large hiking boots. Rose didn't even flinch, as being a princess often meant she received such courtesies.  
>Daniel felt his blood cool, but his mind raced like thousands of tiny electric rods bouncing all over, he looked back up into rose's trusting eyes.<br>"So, these might be a little big," he finally said, trying to break through the silence ringing in his ears.  
>"It's fine." Rose replied; her warm voice breaking the spell over Daniel's mind before she started towards the door, "Well, we had better get going or we won't make it out of the castle before Cogsworth makes his rounds."<br>Daniel quickly grabbed his small, grey backpack, struggling to balance himself with their picnic supplies as he hurried after her retreating figure.

Their footsteps couldn't be heard as they ran down the stairway; Rose only raced faster as she ran outside towards the long, extending bridge. Daniel struggled to keep up; his eyes could barely see the thin trail rose ran along through the thick trees. He felt his knees start to give as they had reached the third mile of running, but he kept after her as she said "Come on _abruti_!"  
>As the sun started to rise over the lightening hills Rose steadily pushed her way up the hill. "Right here," Rose said as they crested the upper edge, a spectacular view of the castle spread out before them with the sun just barely breaking over the horizon behind it; the light on the horizon shooting out like a river of lightning.<br>Daniel clawed his way up the steep hill, his lungs completely on fire and his legs about to collapse under the pressure of his heavy body. All he could do was cough one word out of his panting mouth, "Here?" he gasped grabbing his knees, "why, (pant, cough, pant) why here? And why the Bloody (pant, pant) Hell did we have to get here (gasp) so damn fast? "  
>"Well we didn't want to miss the sunrise, now did we?" Rose said as she took in a deep breath of the cool early morning air.<br>"I somehow (gasp) don't think I'd have minded (pant) missing the damn, (huff) sodden (wheeze) sunrise," Daniel plopped down onto the lush, green grass of the hillside; his lungs inhaled the cool air, quickly cooling down his hot skin. His finger slid over the cool grass and moss bits, rubbing his fingers together as the moist dew clung to his sweaty hands and clothes.  
>"Hey, you'll miss it if you don't look," Rose looked down at him, shaking her head at the collapsed figure behind her.<br>"Oh brilliant," he sighed. "I definitely would hate to miss out on that." He rolled his eyes back into his eyelids; his sore muscles shouted in protest as he forced himself to sit up.  
>The view truly was spectacular. The sun cast its rays through the atmosphere in fantastic beams of purple and blue, creating a silhouette of the ocean that seemed to rise from the mountains and crash down right behind the castle. The clouds burst into white starlight that seemed to shower white droplets over the dark green hills.<br>"Not too bad," Daniel relented after a moment. His breathing finally returned to normal.  
>Rose smiled and walked over to where Daniel lounged on the hillside. Her eyes blinked as he smiled and looked up at her, his face seemed to soften as he patted the ground next to him. She thought for a moment, wondering if he was actually going to be nice to her. She analyzed his eyes, trying to see his intentions behind the playful grin. She carefully sat down in front of him, just far enough away so he couldn't reach her, but stiffened as Daniel just scooted over beside her.<br>"So, where to now?" he asked, acutely aware of her shoulder touching his.  
>"I don't know," Rose replied, "I haven't been away from my bodyguards' since 19-" she cut herself off, seeing the puzzlement in Daniel's eyes she quickly countered, "since a long time ago." She rushed.<br>Daniel could sympathize with Rose on that point; he couldn't think of a time when he hadn't had someone paying attention to what he had been doing, these people would put up with his worst behavior just because they were paid to do so. No one got to know him; no one ever acknowledged his skills or attributes even when he was playing with building blocks.  
>"Well, do you have any favorite spots?" Daniel asked.<br>Rose thought for a moment, "I do know one spot you might be interested in."  
>"Yea, what's that?"<br>"I snuck away from Lumier one time and ran off. I ended up somewhere I'd never been before and found myself in some trouble. My dad saved me but I went back exploring later and discovered a really pretty spot. I could show you that, if you want," Rose told him.  
>Daniel smiled "Sounds good to me," as he stood the feeling that shot down his sore, and pulled legs could only be described in one word: resentment.<br>His legs popped and ached as he severely stretched. He morosely smiled trying to hide the pain showing on his face, and, tenderly, he turned towards her. His eyes turning soft as he casually held out his hand to help her up, "as long as we can walk at a reasonable pace." He sighed.  
>"Deal," Rose took the outstretched hand and rose smoothly to her feet.<br>They didn't talk much as they walked. Rose occasionally forged ahead; her steps were sure, and she hardly ever paused before choosing the easiest path through the thick foliage. Daniel followed at his own pace; knowing Rose would wait for him before she got too far ahead, even though she laughed when he finally managed to catch up.  
>They walked through another grove of trees; Daniel couldn't believe all the vibrant colors of the nature around him. He brushed his hands against dark green moss on top of ancient, cracking rocks. His hand quickly brushed over prickly pine branches, and bright yellow-green leaves of maples and cottonwoods. They passed vivid red and oranges from the small underbrush against the hidden thickets. The tall wild grape vines grew and reached their way up against anything their clawing branches could grasp. The fat, round, purple fruits weighed heavily on most of the small stems. He stopped for a few breathless seconds to watch a small, bright blue hummingbird quickly suck the juices from the small white flowers growing along the trunks of thin, skeleton trees.<br>Eventually, he found Rose waiting for him on the edge of a small, treacherous cliff. The trees grew up to the very edge; their roots growing aimlessly off the sharp protruding rocks. Their dried up edges bare left any signs of the edge, anyone could easily keep running up the hill and mistake the Cliffside for a small downhill hole. The bottom of the precipice was riddled with sharp rocks pointing lethally into the air. It was obvious that one false step could lead to a long drop and a painful death.  
>"Well," Rose said needlessly, "we have to walk carefully now."<br>Daniel carefully looked over the edge, feeling slight vertigo with the action, "uh, why exactly are we doing this? It seems bloody idiotic to me."  
>"Don't be such a little girl," Rose teased, "It's not as hard as it looks. Just do what I tell you to do, and you'll be fine."<br>"Are you completely bodmin? You don't have to carry the bloody bag! And I mean you're a girl, you shouldn't be doi-"  
>He only blinked in surprise and shock as Rose hold out a hand for him to grab. It was the first time she had ever purposely offered to let him take her hand since he failed his attempt the night he first walked through the castle's blue doors. He paused for a heartbeat; his mind going completely blank. He slightly shook himself to regain self-control and took her hand before she could change her mind.<br>"I guess this means that if I fall than I'm taking your arse down with me," he joked.  
>"No," she quipped back, "It means you can catch me when I fall." She turned around and started to pick her way around the edge, becoming grateful for the jeans as dead roots and rocks slid against her legs, "Now, follow me and watch your step or Ted might just have to inform your parents that you were reformed in a slightly more grotesque way than they intended."<br>Daniel smiled but didn't respond. He followed in her footsteps as closely as he could, amazed at how much easier the trail was than it looked. After a few seconds of walking, he felt secure enough to speak.  
>"So where are we, anyways?" he asked.<br>"Not too far from the castle," Rose answered without looking up, "In fact, the road is about 100 meters to the South."  
>Daniel's brow rose, "How can you tell?"<br>"If you look over there, you can see that really tall group of stones; from the road they look like a clawed hand reaching to the sky. There are also a few old, angel statues around it." Nothing else was said for a few more moments until they reached the end of the ledge which was marked by a solid stone wall.  
>Daniel gaffed, "Oh yea," he smiled, "This was totally worth it."<br>Rose ignored him. She released his hand, unaware of the half-disappointed look in his eyes, while using her free hands to reach up and grasp a moss-covered ledge that was about half a meter above her head. She found a foot hold and with a strength Daniel never would have associated with her small frame, boosted herself up.  
>Her thin legs easily crunched onto the small ledge. She positioned her feet against the grey stone walls before she turned back around and held down a hand toward Daniel.<br>"Come on up," she insisted.  
>This time, Daniel ignored the outstretched hand and grabbed the ridge; his cheeks blushing red from being outdone by a girl. Rose turned, carefully crawling into the mossy hole. Daniel had to struggle to pull himself up the way she had; his arms shaking from the strain. He felt his fingers start to slip on the rocky edge, but he planted his feet against the flat wall and, with one last push on his feet while pulling up with his arms, he was completely on the stone shelf.<br>He crawled through a tunnel; his sides sliding against the moist walls soaking his recently purchased seventy-dollar shirt. After a few minutes, he finally reached some light shedding through some thick vines. He arrived at the end of the tunnel and looked up to find himself in a miniature valley.  
>The valley was the most beautiful place Daniel had ever seen. It stretched down the mountain until it hit a large mossy wall that rose about fifty or sixty feet straight up. Water crashed down from a huge waterfall high above them; the water turning into golden mist as it hit the lower rocks making the top of the mountain look capped with shimmering white and gold. As the water slowed and continued down right into the valley, it hit more rocks forming six waterfalls that formed a small, clear pool at the bottom.<br>The rocks around it looked ancient, and cracked. Two small holes had running rivulets making the stones look like a weeping woman. The water reached the edge of the long stretch of the valley's lush forest plant life. The grass was a rich deep green; the blue berry bushes had hundreds of rich, untouched, dark blue berries that shimmered in the sunlight as the mist gathered small dew drops on their smooth flesh.  
>Across from where they were standing was a small pond fed from a natural spring which thinly flowed down a wide area of the steep wall. There was moss and vines covering practically every surface, and Daniel couldn't see any entrance besides the one they had come through. It was truly a spectacular spot.<br>Rose walked a few steps in then turned around; her eyes beaming with excitement. She did a little twirl, gracefully spinning as Daniel took in the view. Her smile only widened as he slowly walked down.  
>"So, what do you think?" she beamed.<br>Daniel took a moment to keep looking around. Rose thought briefly of the small possibility that he would say something polite; the look in his eyes was pure wonder and amazement. She imagined his warm voice saying along the lines of: _"wow princess, this is amazing!" _or _"it's absolute astounding!" _ But the thought was quickly banished as he replied, "How the Bloody Hell did you ever find this place?"  
>Rose rolled her eyes, "I told you, I was exploring."<br>Daniel walked over until he was right beside her, "Yea," he said, "after you told me that your dad saved your arse here. Almost dying in a place tends to make most people stay away from it."  
>"I'm not most people," Rose said simply.<br>Daniel walked over and sat on some moss covered rocks, slinging his pack with their picnic onto the ground beside him, "Yea, I noticed." he replied as he started rummaging through the bag.  
>Rose watched him sitting on the rock; it suddenly struck her how many things had changed over the last few weeks. A month ago, she would have never allowed Daniel to be alone in the same room with her; now here they were, together in the woods, and, since she had taken him to the one place her chaperones didn't know about, there was no possibilities of anyone ever coming to her rescue if Daniel decided to do anything to touch or even hurt her. She felt a slight twitch in her spine, if he made a move on her how could she defend herself or even call for help?<br>Her musing was interrupted as Daniel said, "heads up," and he threw a large, bright red apple to her, taking a bite out of the other one he was holding.  
>Rose caught the apple deftly and turned it over in her hand before taking a large bite. She slowly walked over and sat across from Daniel. They chewed in silence for a few minutes until Daniel spoke.<br>"So," he said with his mouthful of apple, "You bring alop of peole here?"  
>"No," Rose said as her fingers nervously played with the bitten apple. The nerve in her spine twitched harder with the thought that telling Daniel these things might place her in even more danger, "Only my closest friend knows about it."<br>"Chip knows than," Daniel said raising his eyebrows.  
>She blinked; her eyes showing her lack of surprise that he would make that assumption, "Chip's not my closest friend." She finally said.<br>Daniel was slightly taken aback, "well, who it is then?" He asked chortled, "Lumier?"  
>"No," she said, nonplussed. Daniel waited for her reply only smiling. He blinked as she looked past his shoulder and pointed behind him with a delighted smile playing on her lips, "he is."<br>Daniel spun around; No one was there. In fact, the only living thing Daniel could see was a small, black crow resting on a rock nearby. It watched Daniel for a moment with intelligent eyes before it looked at Rose; cocking its head to one side as though asking, 'who is this guy?' Rose stood up and walked over to it. She held out her arm, and the bird dutifully hopped up her arm before resting on top of her shoulder. Rose turned back and walked over to Daniel.  
>"Daniel," she said and set the bird on a rock, "I'd like you to meet Crow."<br>Daniel scoffed, "your closest friend is a crow?"  
>The crow opened its beak and barked out, "Ya got a problem with that, pipsqueak?"<br>"What the Bloody Hell?" he yelled.  
>Daniel jumped up and backed away quickly. His pupils grew wide as the crow's hoarse voice squawked again.<br>"Where'd you find this pansy? A small cave? Or perhaps a mouse hole?"  
>Daniel just sat there with his mouth gaping open, completely speechless. "The… the bird… the bloody bird talks."<br>"Oh get over it pipsqueak." Crow groused. "It's not like I'm stupid like other crows. All those guys are _dummen Köpfe_, squawking around all day, fighting over garbage…. Trust me featherweight, I'm the toughest bird you'll ever meet."  
>"Wait… it speaks bloody German?"<br>"You're the biggest _Schwachkopf _I've ever met! How the _Hölle_ did you ever make it in this _beschissen _world?" He looked over at Rose as Daniel sat dumbfounded, _"Ich dachte, der Kerl war nicht eine totale Verschwendung von Haut. Ich meine, schauen ihn an. Er ist ein kompletter Dummkopf! er kann nicht einmal passieren, dass ich reden, geschweige denn, dass ich rede meiner Geburt Sprache!"  
><em>Daniel's mouth only dropped more as Rose replied back in perfect German, _"Oh, gib ihm ein wenig Kredit. Aufgewachsen ist er nicht zu wissen, über Magie."  
>"Ich wette, er landet mit einem verdammten Herzinfarkt, als er heraus, dass ich ein Mensch bin findet."<br>_"Wait a second!" Daniel shouted. "I don't speak bloody German, what the-"  
><em>"Es spricht."<em> Crow sneered.  
>"Now be nice, Crow; he only speaks English." Rose told the sarcastic bird.<br>"Rose, wait just a damn second." Daniel flared. "Don't you think this is bloody bonkers? For one: the bird is talking, and two: he's bilingual!"  
>"<em>Deutschland, Deutschland über alles…" <em>Crow sang sounding like a dying banshee sending Daniel's ears to near deafness, "_Über alles in der Welt, Wenn es stets zu_- of course I'm speaking German you _Schwachkopf!_"  
>Daniel just turned to Rose, who only shrugged her shoulders, "well…" she contemplated. "He is from Germany."<br>"Who cares where the bloody birds from? What the hell did it say anyways?" Daniel shouted; any composure he had been trying to hold on to completely melting away.  
>Rose walked up to Daniel and placed her hand soothingly on his arm, "he was… saying how, uh, nice it is to meet you."<br>"Like Hell I was," Crow coughed conspicuously.  
>Rose through him a vicious glance before continuing, "He really is very nice once you get to know him."<br>"Get to know… a bird?" Daniel was breathing quickly and staring at Rose's hand on his arm as though it was the only lifeline connecting him to reality.  
>"For the last time pipsqueak: I'm not just a bird!" Crow cawed sharply.<br>"Enough boys! Daniel, are you ok?" Rose asked seeing his face turn pale.  
>"Uh…. (cough) yea, yea I'm alright I just…." Daniel broke away from her grip, rubbing his temples as he walked away. His mind zipped so fast his stomach, lungs, and heart joined in the ill thought dance party. There was no way the crow could be talking. What was going on here? Was he beginning to have cabin fever? Was he going bodmin?<br>He dizzyingly turned back to her; the crow was gone. He looked up the mountain walls to see the small, black speck which was Crow disappear through the golden mist near the top of the mountain.

Daniel and Rose slowly walked along the dirt path, stepping in the same footprints they had pressed into the loose trail that morning. The sky had turned a dark shade of gray while they had been in the secret valley, the time had been thrown off from the high mountain walls blocking the actual location and scattered shadows of the sun.  
>The wind was picking up on the dim mood, the trees bowed starting to release there weakest leaves. Daniel's mind was still reeling from his encounter with Crow, but at the same time he couldn't help but think about how different his relationship with Rose had become.<br>When he had first arrived at the castle, he had found her pretty but also irritating; his only planned interaction with her was to seduce her so he could be kicked out of the hell-hole. Now Daniel found his thoughts of leaving were growing fewer and farther between. He found the daily chores were endurable with Rose by his side, and he realized, with a slight start, that he now considered her a friend. Of course, she was unlike any friend he had had before.  
>All of Daniel's other friends were only there because they wanted something from him: money, fame, sex toys, power, or anything else they could acquire being in his company. Rose wanted none of these things.<br>Daniel watched Rose walk for a minute. She stood with her shoulders straight and tall, as though she could take on the whole world, but Daniel could sense the insecurity she tried so hard to hide. He could almost feel her tension at being alone with him; a tension she would have let control her only a few weeks before. She had shown him this in the greenhouse when he had tried to kiss her, but today she had not only gone with him alone into the woods, but had also taken him to the one place she was completely vulnerable.  
>Suddenly, his thoughts were sharply cut off as a sharp bolt of lightning ripped through the sky, and thunder followed a few moments later. Daniel hadn't noticed how dark the day had become until just that moment, and half a second later rain started to fall, cold and thick drops poured onto their heard. Daniel wiped some thinning gel out of dampening hair; he quickly blushed from the thought of rose seeing his hair completely wet and flat.<br>"Damn," he said immediately and lifted his jacket above his head.  
>"Agreed," Rose muttered and hugged her arms around herself. She didn't have anything to block the rain and swelling wind, the large shirt Daniel loaned her was already starting to soak through along with her hair.<br>Daniel watched her for a moment before he made a conscious decision, he quietly pulled his arms out of his jackets sleeves, "Here," he said draping his jacket around her shoulders, "you need this more than I do."  
>Rose gratefully pulled the too-large jacket around herself; she brushed some thin wet bangs out of her face. She smiled at him, "Thanks." She grinned<br>Daniel brushed his hand through his now sopping hair and said, "No problem." He politely opened the back door to the kitchen for her; both of them snuck back up to their separate rooms and into the showers before the servants even had a chance to notice the wet drippings along the blue carpeted hallways.


	10. Chapter 10

A small mouse quickly cleaned his nose with his paws tiny that were as soft as the large dust bunnies that silently sat next to him under the slightly rust covered oven. He quickly twitched his tiny nose before cautiously poking the fleshy pads an inch from underneath his safe hiding place out into the bright open black and white tiled kitchen floor.  
>His feet quiet as death raced his panicking body across the floor, every second to every pace seemed like hours for ten miles to the little brown creature. He scampered on the slick surface towards some falling cranberry muffin crumbs, his ample paws desperately trying to cling to the floor. His heart no bigger than a tiny popcorn seed hammered enough for ten elephants, after what seemed like a life time he reached the sweet crumbs. Before he could shove all the morsels into his chewy mouth a dark shadow came over his teeny frame; the small mouse squealed at a huge foot started to come down right above him, his little feet shot under the nearest cupboard before Mrs. Potts's petite shoe landed on the glossy floor, her voice swelling in the mouse's tiny leaf-like ears.<br>"They didn't?" Mrs. Potts gasped as she set the warm pot down a little harder than necessary on the little table.  
>"It's true!" Chip said, "They had to have gone into the woods. There isn't any other place they could be."<br>"I do believe it's true," Cogsworth sniffed, quickly checking his pocket watch, "We thoroughly searched the castle and its grounds yesterday, and they were nowhere to be found."  
>Madeline inhaled sharply and put a hand to her chest in dismay, "Surely she wouldn't be so foolish to go alone with that <em>scélérat<em>?"  
>Lumier scooted a little closer to Madeline and wrapped his arm around her thin waist, "I would not worry, <em>Cheri,<em> Rose would never take him somewhere beyond our help."  
>"Lumier," Gisabelle held an embroidered handkerchief up to her heart, "you don't think he would actually," she gasped slightly, "hurt her?"<br>"We all know that he is capable of such atrocious deeds_." _ Cogsworth spoke daintily taking a bite of a sweet, honey-soaked biscuit before directly sipping his tea.  
>"We don't actually know what he is capable of," Mrs. Potts scrambled trying to keep her mind on the steaming tea pot, her hands trying to touch the smooth porcine handle without burning them against the black stove top.<br>"Mamam," Chip interjected, his tea sitting untouched in front of him, "It's completely obvious what type of person he is. Do you really think his parents would have sent him here if he wasn't such a _bâtard_?"  
>"The boy has a point," Lumier said ignoring Mrs. Potts's motherly glare towards the slightly red faced Chip as he realized his slight profound risks in his coarse language.<br>Cogsworth went to take another sip of his strong, English gray tea, "It is exactly why I still say we should inform the master-" everyone cut him off at the same time with multiple shushes and hisses of "quiet!" causing him to spill his tea down his "once" perfect front.  
>"I'm just saying," he spluttered as he wiped away the gray-green tea off his soon to be stained, white, ruffled, front collar. His face starting to become bright red, "the master would like to know."<br>"If we bring him into this we'll be opening a can of worms we will never be able to close again," Mrs. Potts insisted.  
>"Not to mention how Rose would feel about us. She would think we were all <em>traîtres<em>," Madeline added sadly.  
>Chip thought about it for a moment, "but what if he hurts her and we could have prevented it? Wouldn't it be better for us to have Rose mad at us than have her permanently scarred because he hurt her?"<br>Everyone looked down at their tea, thinking about what Chip had just said. The possibilities of what Daniel could do and what would happen if they overreacted fighting each other in their minds. Finally, Mrs. Potts couldn't take it any longer.  
>"I think we are all overreacting. We should simply give them a little time before we make our decision."<br>"I concur," Lumier said, "If he had hurt her than we would know about it, and she certainly would not be out there with him again."  
>"What?" Chip exclaimed, "don't tell me she actually is back out there."<br>"As much as I hate agreeing with Lumier," Cogsworth input, "it is most certainly accurate that the young-"  
>Lumier cut him off, "yes, she is."<br>Cogsworth looked ruffled, "I was saying exactly what you just-"  
>"Yes, but you were taking longer than a candle takes to burn."<br>"I most certainly was not!"  
>Chip interrupted, "would you both please stop it? We were discussing Rose not your speaking habits."<br>"I thought we were all in agreement about that," Madeline said.  
>"Yes, I believe we are," Mrs. Potts agreed, "We shall wait and see what happens, and, if it comes to it, inform Aaron and allow him to decide the miscreant's punishment."<br>Everyone nodded their heads slowly; Chip taking a fraction of a second longer than any of the others. After a moment, everyone started to slowly stand. Out of nowhere, a shadow swept over them and everyone looked up, startled.  
>"What was that?" Madeline asked.<br>"It was just a bird," Chip said, "a blue jay I think."  
>Everyone smiled and started to wander off; none of them giving a second thought to the mysterious black bird that cawed softly as it flew towards the woods in search of its friend and her annoying, <em>Schwachkopf<em> of a hiking buddy.  
>*************************************************************************************"So your (cough) best bud isn't coming today?" Daniel asked, cautiously hoping he was right as they walked through a dark path shadowed by the thick foliage of the trees above. He quickly looked up to see if the annoying black ball of feathers was following them, or worse bringing other's along with it.<br>"Not that I know of," Rose responded and stopped to fix her pant leg which was caught on one of her bootlace latches.  
>Daniel paused and watched her, unconsciously studying her movements. She had one of her hands leaning against the tree to steady her, yet even in this unlikely pose for a princess she still kept her unique sleek less beauty as if she were wearing the most tearable dress he could imagine. Even though she was dressed as a back street tomboy with her legs in his rough black jeans, her waist and top drenched in his white and black boy bands shirt spreading the designs of the faces from the legendary rock band "QUEEN" on the back. And of course her small mousy feet trying to stay in his sleek, black and red hiker shoes that his mother had carelessly gave to him for his eighteenth birthday without even attending the opera concert she herself had enforced him to attend.<br>Even through all her tough and roughish glares he found himself amazed at the grace she had even in such ordinary clothes, considering he could barely imagine finding her wearing his casual t-shirts and jeans he would wear to his drinking parties in his father's mansion back in Kingston.  
>He couldn't help himself from marveling at how beautiful he found her to be, even though his clothes did not flatter or emphasize her curves such as the other so called stripper beauties he normally found himself with. He used to be around girls that would dance around a squeaky poll throwing off all their clothes and showing off their most seductive moves in order to get his moods going, but this girl touched him in a way he never thought he could be touched; this thin, bratty yet spunky princess could understand him without ever having to rub her fingers all over him.<br>He smiled to himself trying to keep his eyes on her graceful moves, her delicate features, her shining eyes that burned like small glowing embers.  
>"What are you looking at?" Rose said breaking into his musings.<br>"Nothing," Daniel quickly replied as his face turned scarlet. Luckily, Rose couldn't tell because of the dim lighting from the forest canopy.  
>She shrugged, "ok," she said and started walking again. Daniel took a moment, he quickly breathed in some cooling air that rushed from his lungs and into his burning cheeks faster than a racing rabbit running from a ravenous fox. He quickly licked back his styled hair before catching up to his new friend.<br>"So," Rose said carefully after a moment, "I was wondering if I could ask you something." She breathed nervously, her fingers delicately playing with her hair.  
>Daniel wasn't so sure that he liked the tone in her voice but he answered, "If you want." He nippily gulped down his short squeak as Rose looked at him, playfully smiling from his blushing cheeks which looked like two cherries growing underneath his eyes.<br>Rose paused for just a moment before she started speaking, "well, why did your parents send you here anyways? Papa never told me the whole story."  
>Daniel stopped in his tracks; his mind racing as he tried to think of something to tell her. He frenziedly searched for any excuse, explanation, justification, any reason he could possibly incline without telling her the full knowledgeable truth. Daniel noticed Rose watching him expectantly and he decided to try to dodge her question, "Oh no, sorry princess I don't do sob stories."<br>"Really, it couldn't have been that bad," Rose pushed.  
>Daniel almost laughed when he heard her say that. He imagined the look on her face if he told her: 'oh I only slept with this bloody slut, and she was found stabbed to death in our hotel room three days later, no biggee', laughing to himself as he imagined her cheeks suddenly draining faster than a broken drain pipe of color. He knew that everything that had evolved in their friendship would go out the window if she ever found out: trust-gone, loyalty-dead, friendship-extinct, and somehow, he found he couldn't live with that. However, he realized, he didn't want to lie to her either, so he decided to settle on a partial truth.<br>"Well," he teased, "I just couldn't stand their smelliness anymore, and they couldn't accept it when I finally told them to take a bloody bath already." Rose raised her eyebrow at him. "Ok, ok, in all seriousness, they wanted me to become more of a gentleman; they thought I misbehaved too often." He tried to laugh slightly as he continued, "I mean, really, can you see me as a snot-nosed gentleman waiting on ladies with expensive purses and dresses while I carelessly hold the door open for them as they gossip and bicker for the next hour?"  
>Rose shook her head slightly, and Daniel continued in a slightly more cheeky tone, "Or even sitting straight faced at dinner while trying not to laugh at my grandmother who in fact has a nose like that puppet kid with the bloody annoying cricket, and her choppers falling out of her huge lips while she's trying to sip her soup through a spoon that's smaller then my nails? I mean really, in my mind that's a bloody waste of time; and it's a lot duller than what I do. Don't you think so? You know, being trapped her in this princess role and all?"<br>Rose smiled and started walking again, she flicked her hair away from her eyes as she replied, "Don't make too much of a mockery, or I might start to think you mean it. However, I am glad to hear it wasn't anything serious, though."  
>"Yea, nothing serious," Daniel repeated instantly, he averted her direction while feeling his gut twist uncomfortably with guilt. "So, where are we going anyways?" he sputtered trying to change the subject and avoiding the growing twist towel in his jumping stomach. He felt a quick flash of relief when his avoidance trick actually worked as she sighed before turning her eyes in another direction.<br>"Nowhere in particular," Rose said and gave him a little, half-smile that made his gut grow tighter. They headed down the small, thin deer paths. He passed by green pines, ancient birch and oaks that reached higher than most of the mansions back in Kingston. He glanced over to the thickest sticker bush he had ever seen, the bush was at least as thick as his upper torso, and shaped like a demented prickly car from hell. Daniel smiled as he imagines the bush making a sharp honk and driving straight after Ted, leaving Ted's scraggly broken glasses in the dirt.  
>Out of the silence he caught the faintest glimpse of something gray and furry disappear back into the dense brush like soup going into his great-grandmother's lips. Slowly peeking through one of the many holes arranged by the battered leaves, he could see one, lone shining eye staring back at him.<br>His teenage mind automatically sprung the thought _"hey, I don't know what that is… let's check it out!" _His grin spread wider than Queen Marie Antoinette laughing before the stroke of the guillotine on her latest victim. As he approached the now quivering leaves, he didn't notice Rose quickly turn her head northward, hearing the slightest sound of howling further up the mountain. Her brown eyes scanned the horizon while he timidly pulled back the dark leaves to find the biggest puppy he had ever seen. He watched the giant, scared eyes look at him. The tiny pup gave a loud cry as he reached his hand down to touch its soft nose.  
>Daniel laughed; he started to grab the pup's small scruff but hesitated as he heard Rose's stern voice.<br>"We need to go, Daniel," Rose said nervously, glancing around quickly, "now."  
>Daniel hadn't heard Rose use that tone since his first night at dinner, and he found his guilt swell within him, this pig-headed girl started to sound just like his over-bearing useless mother. The small quirk of guilt that had been slowly bubbling and building like magma inside an active volcano suddenly transform into hot magma nous form of rebellion, the way it had all of his life.<br>"It's just one damn, baby wolf," He sneered and grabbed a dead stick off the ground as he slowly start to poke the frightened animal, "cute little thing, though."  
>Rose nervously watched Daniel lift his stick away from the little creature, almost touching its small delicate nose, "Daniel," she stated sternly, "Don't you dare touch that creature again! You are being exceedingly foolish, and I must put my foot down to your childish behavior!"<br>Daniel froze before turning around slowly; his anger redirecting immediately to the girl standing resolutely in front of him.  
>"Foolish?" he practically shouted, "You think I'm being foolish? You're the bloody fool! I've already explained to you, your so-called highness, that you have no <strong>authority over me!<strong> You are a-"  
>Daniel would have continued except he was interrupted by a long, low howl much too close for comfort. Rose and Daniel stared at each other for just a moment before they both ran to the two nearest, white oak trees and scrambled up the branches, barely reaching five feet before a pack of wolves walked into the clearing, prompting both the hikers to scurry higher into the branches. The wolves quickly realized where the two of them were hiding and started circling the trees.<br>"Oh wonderful, Daniel," Rose said exasperated, "I'm so glad you're not a 'bloody fool' because we might just have ended up treed by a pack of very angry wolves if you were!"  
>"Don't you blame this on me," Daniel shot back, "I didn't lead us to this area."<br>"And how exactly am I supposed to know where the wolves are? You should have listened to me when I said we had to leave!"  
>"Naturally, I should have followed the demented little twit who fancies herself so brilliant when she doesn't even know how to put on a bloody pair of pants!"<br>"You are the most cruel, selfish dolt I have ever met! I don't know how you tricked me into ever believing otherwise! _**C'est de ta faute**_! _Je ne peux pas croire que je vous avez suivi dans ces bois maudits, en premier lieu-"_  
>Daniel couldn't stop himself from cutting her off, "maybe you'd get some sense of reality if you quit playing the moronic princess and actually left this hellhole!"<br>Daniel realized he had made a colossal mistake the second the words left his lips. Rose's face turned white, and her hands clenched in defiance of her wet eyes; her voice shook slightly as she responded, "Well, I've seen what your reality has made of you, and it isn't anything I want."  
>"Rose, I-" Daniel started, desperately searching for the words to apologize but Rose cut him off.<br>"Just shut-up, Daniel, and leave me alone," she said and climbed around her tree until the trunk was between the two of them.  
>Daniel looked toward her before he turned and punched the trunk of his tree as hard as he could, causing his knuckles to start bleeding.<br>"Damn, Bloody Hell!" He cussed as he waved his hand in pain, "Damn it! Why did I ever come out here with that stupid, repressed-"  
>Suddenly, he clung to the trunk, feeling a powerful rumble shake the ground and into the hearts of the trees. Daniel looked up at the trembling hillside and realized a large avalanche of stones was heading directly toward them. The huge, heavy stones fell rolled down with the force of hundreds of charging rhino's. The wolves also looked up in fear, watching the stones crash and destroy small trees or smash anything in their path. They let out frightened yelps and howls before running away as fast as their legs would take them. Daniel watched them go without feeling anymore relieved; even though this was the end of their imprisonment, nature was full running them into a stony, painful death.<br>He held tightly to the coarse, biting bark, praying that the tree could withstand the unstoppable force coming to end his already aggravating day.  
>He closed his eyes, ready to hear the crashing sound of his tree falling to the flat ground squishing him along with its hefty fall. There was a gigantic crash that echoed through the woods, Daniel could feel dirt touch his face and go up his nose. His arms shook from the strain but didn't let go of the rough bark, he felt his heart hammering beneath his rib cage as if trying to leave his soon-to-be-dead body behind.<br>His lungs seemed to hold in every ounce of air around them, daring not to even breathe as the echoes faded behind the mountains. Daniel slowly opened his dirt covered eyes, blinking along with his frantic heart to see the stones had stopped into a ditch a few meters away from his tree. Shakily he let go of the wide trunk, his arms throbbing in retribution quickly turning sore as he heavily leaned against the trunk. He looked up just in time to see a black bird fly down and land on the tree across from them, facing his pulsing right arm.  
>"Did you see that?" Crow's hoarse voice cawed in the dense branches. All Daniel could see of the pesky bird were his shiny, black button eyes. "I've been saving that escape plan für<em> immer<em>, and I just saved both your butts! All hail-"  
>Crow froze as he finally took in the scene. He immediately looked at Daniel and cawed, "What the <em>Hölle<em> did you do to her? Why is she crying?"  
>Daniel automatically came to his own defense, "I didn't do any-"<br>"_Ruhig sein_! I have no need für _deine liegt_!" Crow snapped his clacking beak, with a shrill caw he flashed like a black lightning cloud almost pinching Daniel's pointed nose with his small sharp talons. Daniel quickly touched only feeling soft feathers whisk by his cheeks, crow landed like a parrot to his perch right onto rose's right left shoulder.  
>Daniel stared after him, feeling ready to go another round with thee boxing tree and his scratched up knuckles. He couldn't believe that all he had been through in the last few hours had culminated into being told off by a wannabe-human pillow stuffing-to-be. He tried to calm his temper enough to eavesdrop on what Rose was telling Crow about him but he realized almost immediately that they were speaking in German.<br>Daniel stared at the trunk; he only felt the everlasting sting of building guilt, along with the most obnoxious biting conscience telling him the painful truth of his ill behavior towards Rose. His mind rushed from one excuse to the next trying in vain to come up with the perfect reasons and ways so that the hiding girl behind the next tree over was in the wrong.  
><em>"What gives her the right to tell me what to do?" <em>His fingers clenched as he swung his fist through the air like an angry monkey that had lost his mango to the neighbor next door. "_She should just sod off! I mean, who the hell does she think she is? Going around demanding everyone to follow her orders; does she think she's the Bloody queen of Sheba?"  
><em>Daniel swung his arm again, his hot face quickly turning pale as his leg slipped off the branch. He felt his lungs scream before slamming right into the branch below, his hanging legs only inches away from the ground.  
>Through the painful moans in his mouth he heard a soft clout on the ground, sorely pushing his aching chest up he saw Rose walking away from him, the annoying black parrot still squawking on her shoulder. As he was carefully swinging down, a sick sting poked inside his stomach, he could feel a growing sense of guilt creeping into his already pain washed eyes.<br>A new thought struck Daniel as he painfully walked behind them, "_What if she never talks to me again? She's the only one who didn't look down on me in this hellhole, well except Ted but he couldn't hold a conversation if his life depended on it, and how many tortures can I inflict on him before I get too bored to even throw another spit wad… Maybe I should just apologize and get it over with,"  
><em>Daniel paused in his steps at the horror of the idea. It didn't take him long to think of a better solution, "_then again, the only other company she has is that flea-ridden parakeet and that wimpy little twig, so it shouldn't take long before she comes to me on her hands and knees. In fact, I bet it won't even take a whole day before she'll be begging for my forgiveness. I'll just have to wait her out; after all, I have way more endurance than any damn women."_

Rose walked through her flower garden, ignoring her tagalong hiding in the shadows. She walked slowly, running her fingers through the leaves as she went, stopping here and there to water her flowers, and occasionally glancing out of the corner of her eye to see if stalker had moved. It was the same routine she had done all week since their fight in the forest: eat breakfast, ignore Daniel, read in the library, give cold shoulder to Daniel, eat lunch in her room to evade Daniel, clean and take care of her plants, shun Daniel, finally eat dinner and leave quickly to escape the persistent pest.  
>Daniel, for his part, had mostly just followed her, sticking to the shadows just enough to give the impression of secrecy. The first day or so he had tried to approach her but he quickly realized it was a bad idea to wound his pride, so he was now openly leaving the next move to Rose.<br>Rose knelt next to a particularly dry-looking rosebush and started pouring the cool liquid on its roots. She glanced up again and noticed Daniel had moved from his place in the shadows; he was now leaning against a column just inside the perimeter. Rose stared at the slightly wilted roses in front of her and sighed out loud. She stood up slowly, wiping the dirt off her knees, and walked toward Daniel. He stood and watched her get closer, cautiously smiling as she came within talking distance and stopped.  
>"Why are you following me?" She snapped, folding her arms across her chest.<br>"Why do you keep heading everywhere I want to go?" he tried to joke but quickly straightened himself from the threatening look that remained on her pastel face, "I just was hoping to talk to you."  
>"About what exactly?" she shot back almost striking him like an angry adder.<br>Daniel regarded his words carefully, "About the day with the wolves," he paused, "when I was a total jackass."  
>"Oh yea," she said coldly, "I remember that day."<br>"Look," Daniel finally couldn't stand the tension; he looked up at her trying to avoid the glare from her eyes as he bit his tongue. _"Oh bloody hell I know I'm going to regret this." _he grimaced.  
>Even though the words tasted like snake venom Daniel finally managed to spit out, "I know I was being an arse and a bloody idiot, so of course I really didn't mean what I said."<br>"You didn't," Rose tried to urge him on without losing any of the chill in her voice.  
>"Of course not," He said, "I was just having a bad day and then you told me what to do and-"<br>"So it's my fault?" Rose cut him off and Daniel backtracked immediately.  
>"No, no, no, no, no," he spluttered, "you weren't wrong, and…" he faltered as he finished, "I should have listened…"<br>Rose looked at Daniel's downcast expression, recognizing the unspoken apology that Daniel was too stubborn to say out loud. Her expression slowly softened as she realized again how much Daniel had changed since he had been there; sure he said some horrible things to her, but was they really any different or better than the things she said when she was upset with her mom, or, for that matter, the things she had said to him in the woods.  
>"Yes," she slightly softened her voice, "you should have." Daniel looked at her with a little smile playing at his lips, clearly seeing the end of the road to their week long silent treatment.<br>"I guess I could have been slightly less commanding," Rose finished and Daniel stopped himself from pointing out how correct he thought she was and she continued, "How about we just forget this whole mess and move on?"  
>Daniel smiled and said, "Absolutely!"<p> 


	11. Chapter 11

The sun seemed to rise slowly from behind the purple mountains, as if it too didn't want to rise to the day's orders and specifications but to remain silent and in rest with night's warm blanket.  
>But the sun did raise, its vibrant lukewarm rays quietly shed and dripped through the castle windows. The smooth glass looking like spots of clear water shining against white stones as if from a fairy, the light reached into Daniel's room softly tickling his smooth cheeks.<br>He sighed warily knowing that he should be getting ready for the day ahead of him; sure it was going to be full of nothing but work and chores with the slight aggravation of his blistered hands from washing the tiled floors for the last week. But he wanted to see if Rose would come to get him since they had made up the night before; he wanted to know if last night really happened and that he actually got his only friend back again even though he had treated her poorly.  
>Daniel felt his inside slightly twinge from the thought of his old friends back in London, he was sure that they were spending all the money he had 'lent' them without even a second thought of the prisoner that was left behind; but what else could he do? Only one thing: behave as good as possible, then, when his jail guards weren't watching, skip the stone and get away as fast as his little gold card would allow back to his mother's mansion. Back to his life, his lap of luxury with fast cars, top bars, and drinks. But the twinge only grew into a small thorn; his mind swept back to Rose's smiling face. As far as he knew she wouldn't ever leave, hell as far as he knew she had <em>never<em> left this prison. He quietly rolled over trying to comfort his slightly sore leg, only thinking about what would happen to his friend if he left her alone here. Would she be fine? Or would she be sad forever? Would she ever break free of here?  
>He closed his eyes trying to push down his feelings; he didn't want to think of anyone else. The only thing that mattered was him, his escape, his life, his way to freedom and back into the world he knew and wanted back.<br>His heart flapped as he heard someone knock on his door. He laid in still silence, not moving a single muscle under his cream sheets as the door crept open. His smile grew as the door closed softly, only leading to the soft padding sound of small footsteps walking on the supple wan colored rug on the floor.  
>There was no doubt about it; Rose had come to wake him. He could already see her long, white furred robe over her patched up nightdress she always wore to wake him up.<br>Daniel listened to her calm, tender thumping from her small mouse-like feet. Mischievously waiting for her to get close enough for his grand wakeup call that he had spent hours plotting and designing his newest wind-up: "The stay in bed all day! Prank."  
>He felt her lean over to wake him up, his grin barely showing his white teeth as his victim drew closer. Her thin fingers had scarcely touched the surface of his silky sheets before his hands immediately grabbed around her elfin waist, ignoring her shocked face as he pulled her onto the blankets behind him; quickly twisting his body away from hers so he could safely rest above her with the edge of the blanket between them. Her shocked brown eyes just blinked in front his cool, blue-water eyes. She started to shriek but quickly silenced herself to not attract anyone to the awkward scene.<br>"Que faites-vous, Daniel!" Rose almost shrieked at him.  
>"I just figured it was time for you to get some rest," he smiled impishly. His hands flashed from her waist up to her shoulders. He kept smiling seeing her cute pouting lip start to quiver on her face, playfully letting out a childish chuckle as he started to sit up.<br>"Oh, get off," Rose slightly giggled realizing his self-indulgent, babyish prank. She roughly pushed him away from her face. Daniel obligingly rolled only instead of rolling back to the right he rolled twice to the left coming amazingly close to the edge of the mattress above the hard checkered floor. He smiled again with Rose still under him only now he was as tangled in the blanket as she was; he quickly glanced towards the door making sure no one was coming into this **"falsifying"** prank scene.  
>"Not what I meant," Rose groused still trying to push Daniel's face away while kneeing up against his chest.<br>Daniel yawned pointedly, "Now, since you are resting, so can I, thus princess, I am completely guilt free."  
>"You do realize," Rose pointed out smugly, "that in our current position, I am resting but you are not."<br>"Well, that's easy enough to fix," Daniel laughed as he rolled one more time to the right, idiotically not keeping track of how close the bed's edge really was to the two playful teenagers. He stifled Rose's smug grin as the unedifying power of gravity began to pull them down towards the hard floor.  
>Daniel's laugh was also muted as his body was quickly pulled off the edge of the bed, he found himself falling onto what felt like a cement basketball court. It didn't help that Rose was practically attached to him, and, before he could really breathe, Rose shrieked as she landed right onto his back, continuing to squish his already throbbing chest.<br>Daniel groaned quietly, frowning from the fact of how little cushioning the thick blanket had managed to provide from the rolling fall.  
>Rose couldn't stop the laughter building up inside her, "well, at least I had something soft to land on." She managed to say before her gaiety overwhelmed her, and she started laughing harder than a happy meadowlark, sympathetically putting her face in-between Daniel's shoulder blades trying to muffle her laughing fit.<br>Daniel turned and looked up at her, her face now shoved into his chest, before feeling himself start laughing in agreement from the state his prank had become. Their laughing shrilly halted to a dead stop as they heard the door open; their eyes widened from fright as someone walked into the room.  
>"Hello?" A familiar voice said. Rose quickly and desperately tried to sit up; hurriedly forgetting that her legs and feet were still tangled up around the blanket. She fell back down; barely missing a head-to-head collision with a rabbit eyed Daniel.<br>"What in the world?" the voice said, a lot closer now, and the two miscreants looked up to see a pale faced, open mouthed Ted standing at the end of the bed, a tray of food threatening to fall from his hands. Daniel felt his heart sink from the sight of Ted's once expressionless, monotone face that was now covered in shock and surprise ignoring the fallen orange fruit pieces, buttered toast and water that had shattered with the silver tray to the floor.  
>They looked up at him for barely a second before they both cracked up howling in laughter, sending Ted into a frozen state of bewilderment. Daniel couldn't stop laughing, which was a new feeling for him, and every time Rose or him moved, the blankets would get more tangled around them causing them to get more tightly enclosed.<br>Without warning, a woman's voice resonated down the hall: Bell's voice, "Rose, _mon cher, êtes-vous là-bas_? I need to talk to you, honey."  
>The laughter instantaneously stopped from the dooming sound of Rose's mother coming steadily closer to the imaging bedroom. Daniel's heart ceased its usual rhythm as his small pupils flew back to Rose.<br>He watched Rose glance down, obviously taking stock of exactly how bad the situation was. Daniel followed suit, mentally counting the many things Bell would not approve of: One: he was a complete mess in his usual bedtime outfit of pajama pants without a shirt though it was all hidden in the blankets. Two: his hair was ruffled and spiked everywhere as if he had just woken up from a one-night-stand. Three: Rose was a much bigger mess; her hair had come undone at some point and was spilling down her back, her dress was disheveled and pulled around her strangely, one of her slippers was on his bed, the other on the floor by Ted, and she was of course completely caught in a blanket with him.  
>Daniel looked up into Rose's horrorstruck face one second longer before he spoke to Ted, "Stall her!" He begged, and added when Ted just continued to stare at the pair, "please!" he hissed.<br>The shock of Daniel saying please to anyone broke Ted out of his jolted stupor. He quickly set his tray down on the end of Daniel's bed and walked out of the door toward Belle. Daniel barely had time to register that Ted was actually helping him get away with this before the door closed with a click, and Rose started struggling to get out of the blankets. Daniel immediately joined her by unwinding his legs first so she could slip free onto the slick floor. It only took seconds before they both were free and were standing at the door, peeking through a crack.  
>Ted was doing his job well, continuing to blandish and direct Belle around a corner going on about his interests in the old relic tapestries all along the red rugged hall. He glanced back one more time towards the closed doors before he lead Belle further down the corridor.<br>Rose's heart hammered as she slightly peaked through her barely visible crack between the doors; her body easily slipped out as quickly and silently as a frantic mouse across a kitchen floor. Rose ran to her room, holding her shoes in her hands. Daniel turned and leaned against the door, a sigh of relief passing quickly passed through his lips. His wide eyes rapidly scanned around the room, his hands scrambled to clean and pick up the mess.  
>Bed sheets flew into the air, in seconds there were towels drying the watery puddles that had flowed onto the floor from the silver cup that had come along with Daniel's currently dropped breakfast. He moved Ted's tray to his dressing table and grabbed a bite of warm toast as he frenetically grabbed the bits of sliced oranges.<br>Heart still racing he managed to pick up his bedspread without touching the soaked towels by his feet. As he began to pull the soft sheets up his ears picked up the slightest sound of a small ping hit against the hard floor. Daniel looked down and saw Rose's gold hairpin on the floor, the diamonds that artistically twirled into the shape of a shining rose didn't even glimmer against the polished flooring.  
>He dropped the blankets on his disheveled bed and bent down to pick up the shiny, smooth metal. Delicately turning it over in his hand to see all the tiny silver strands that looked like veins among the pedals, causing the white rose to seem like it was fully blooming on the other side. As he held it closer to his face to examine it, he caught the slightest whiff of Rose's lilac-daffodil perfume, and something in him stirred. He stared at the simple elegance of the fragile flower and couldn't help but see the resemblance to its owner.<br>It was beautiful in its subtle elegance, simple yet when you looked at it in the right light it sparkled almost magically, and it was stronger than it appeared: all traits he had come to admire about the flower's human counterpart.  
>Daniel caught the scent again and images started running through his mind as emotions started twisting his gut: Rose leaning over her flowers, pushing her hair back with a dirt-covered hand which caused a streak of dirt across the side of her forehead; Rose leading him through the woods, gracefully holding her hands out to feel the leaves as they passed into meadows and up the hidden deer trails; and finally, Rose lying stuck in a blanket with him as she laughed harder and with more feeling than any person he had ever met. In fact, Daniel couldn't remember ever have meeting someone with the same commitment and passion attached to everything they did in life; someone so full of wonder and appreciation for every moment, every sight and sound. He realized he had also never found anyone who cared more about what became of him. A girl who wanted nothing more from him than for him to try his hardest to be the man she believed he was capable of being.<br>Daniel stared at the hairpin a second longer before setting it gently on his nightstand, while the feeling in his gut transformed into a thought: did he have feelings for Rose? Was he actually starting to want to help and care for someone else?

Aaron stretched as he slowly wandered through the castle's many corridors. He had spent all morning doing paperwork in the library, trying to handle and respect the new ways the turning world was heading on the outside; he looked down the next corridor knowing his ill welcomed guest was currently down in the kitchen, dangerously arousing the princess of this castle, his daughter.  
>He looked down toward Daniel's room and noticed the door slightly ajar, a soft wind blowing though making the tapestries on the wall stir restlessly.<br>"Lazy boy," he said to himself and walked towards the unlocked room.  
>Aaron's strong fingers grabbed the silver handle, he felt a sneer come to his lips when he slipped open the creaking door; his sneer only grew as he took in the untidy, undistinguishable mounds of clothes and books, also known as Daniel's mountainous mess. The bedcovers were lying on a pile on his bed, while towels were lying haphazardly on the floor. Aaron jeered in disgust, he knew that this boy would never improve but also that the time was drawing close for the boy's stay to be abruptly cancelled.<br>He rubbed his fingers together, his thoughts brimming with memories that painted his mind with images and flash backs of his precious girl, her eyes shining playfully as a child about to take her first horse ride down across the wide bridge.  
>He briefly smiled, wanting to see his daughter truly be free and happy again just like before; before knowing the wounding truth of her imprisonment here, about knowing that she could never leave his castle. His heart slightly panged with guilt and sympathy, remembering his time trapped and confined in this prison of roses and stone. He stepped back out to close the door, but as the sun's setting rays landed on the silver and glass side table next to Daniel's muddled bed, something gold slightly sparkled catching his eyes.<br>Aaron walked over to the nightstand, carefully avoiding the towels on the floor. As he got closer, his heart almost stopped when he realized it was his precious little girl's hairpin lying so deceitfully innocent on the thick glass. He reached down and picked up the delicate gold and stared at it for a moment, with the hope it would suddenly prove itself to be something other than what it was; he had no such luck.  
>Aaron took in the view of the disheveled bed before his heart seemed to crack like breaking glass, and he marched quickly out of the door in search of his now less-than-innocent baby girl about this horrid golden pin in the damned offender's room.<br>It didn't take long for Aaron to find his daughter; she was tending her flowers in the greenhouse, and, miraculously, she was alone.  
>Rose started talking when her father's shadow fell over her rosebush, "What are you doing here, Dani-" She stopped as she looked up into her father's angry face, "<em>papa<em>, I wasn't expecting you in here."  
>"It appears I am not the only one where I am not expected today," he sneered. Rose blinked raising her dirtied hands; her eyes trying to hide the fear deep inside her; her heart only hammered worse from the petrifying glare in Aaron's ice blue eyes.<br>"_Papa_…" she quickly smiled, "_Papa_ what are you teasing me about-"  
>"Enough Rose." Aaron snapped, "I do not presume to understand how difficult you feel your life has become, however your discontent should never be reflected in your behavior."<br>"Papa," Rose said, "I am sure I do not understand what you mean."  
>"Allow me to elaborate," Aaron held up the offending hairpin and Rose's face lost all color, "I discovered this in Daniel's chambers. I am offering you one opportunity to clarify the details."<br>Rose couldn't think of anything to say and as the silence dragged on she felt her own anger rising.  
>"You had no right," she said quietly.<br>"_Excusez-moi?_" her father said, certain he must have heard her wrong.  
>"I said," she spoke louder and stood so she was facing her father, "You had no right."<br>"No right to wha-" this time Rose cut her father off.  
>"No right to search Daniel's room."<br>Aaron paled slightly, understanding that Rose wasn't denying her presence in the malefactor's room. But his temper soon boiled until it outweighed his shock, and his face simmered to beet red as he nearly shouted, "I am the master of this castle! I have every right to search any chamber I feel, and Daniel's chambers are rather obviously on my mind."  
>"Daniel has been behaving himself far more than your expectations of him dictate, and you still will search through his things as though he is a common thief. He deserves more than that," Rose said not even bothering to hide her anger.<br>Aaron thought of the letter he had received before Daniel's arrival and all of the bad things he had done and was accused of doing, this only added fuel to his already burning chest.  
>"He deserves no respect from anyone most especially me," he said, "and none of this outweighs the facts: you were in Daniel's room, alone and vulnerable. You will tell me exactly what that boy did to you."<br>"Nothing!" Rose burst, "he did nothing to me! I freely entered his room and he pulled a harmless prank on me."  
>"What exactly was his prank?" Aaron spat.<br>Rose looked away, clearly embarrassed, and Aaron felt his heart almost stop.  
>"Rose," he said and put his hand under her chin forcing her to look at him, "look me in the eyes and explain exactly what Daniel did to you."<br>Rose stared at her father, "he didn't do anything, papa, we just had a tussle that was all."  
>"What?" Aaron sputtered and released her chin.<br>"We had a little brawl," Rose reworded her sentence.  
>"Enough," Aaron looked straight into Rose's eyes, "tell me: did that immoral, licentious <em>bâtard<em> deflower you?"  
>Rose looked at her father, absolutely mortified at the idea her <em>papa<em> could even think such a thing, "Of course not, _papa_! Daniel would never do such a thing to me! I can't believe you would even consider that as a possibility!"  
>Aaron barely managed to control his emotions; he searched his daughter's face, desperately praying she would not show him any signs of a lie. After a moment, he managed to truly let it sink in that his daughter had held onto her virginity. However, he still was full of anger at the arrogant little <em>âne<em> who was far less than innocent. He remembered the letter he had received before Daniel had arrived and decided he was never going to give that _souillon_ any more opportunities to destroy his sweet, credulous baby.  
>"Rose," he started with full authority in his every syllable, "It has become exceedingly obvious you have become too comfortable and lax in your judgment towards this malcontent. You are behaving without any of the restraint or dignity you hold as a princess and as my daughter,"<br>He took a breath, trying to keep his boiling inferno of anger under control; and to surpass and struggle to keep his eyes from giving away his disappointment in Rose, who was starting to tear up right in front of her father as if she was the sad thirteen-year old again desperately looking out the window towards the outside world. Back on the day where she had found out the truth, the truth that she would never leave this place because of her father's haunting past. Because of his mistakes, an innocent child would suffer trapped in this lonely prison just as he was so many years ago. "Therefore," he coughed clearing his tightening throat, "I cannot in good conscience, knowing what I know of the situation and of Daniel's past, allow you to continue any contact with this tempter."  
>"You can't do thi-" Rose started to say.<br>"I am," Aaron snarled, "If I find out you so much as say good morning to him than you shall be confined to your room."  
>Rose made a sound of protest but Aaron cut her off severely, "You will obey me! Of this I am most adamant!"<br>Rose looked at her father, tears of anger brewing in her eyes, and he threw her hairpin on the ground before he turned to go, "Do not test my resolve on this matter, Rose. You will not like the results, of this I can guarantee."  
>Aaron rushed away, not daring to look back at his tear faced girl; he wouldn't, he couldn't look back. His thoughts and anger now turned to the start of this whole mess, he knew what needed to be done even if his cherished, little girl never talked to him again.<br>He stormed back onto the third floor, down the fifth corridor. His blue eyes looked like pure icy orbs, which instantly froze when he saw the repulsive, sweaty, half-dressed lowlife currently changing into his abhorrent white sleeveless shirt that spat in the faces of all decent gentlemen.  
>Daniel didn't even have time to see Aaron's shadow. As he pulled down his clean shirt, his back rammed into a wall, his feet were off the ground, and he was being held up by an infuriated red-faced father. Daniel only saw anger and hate in Aaron's eyes, like cutting ice they purged into his mind as if trying to cut him up from the inside out.<br>Aaron's voice was deeper than the dark hidden underneath mountains and as threatening as thunder after lightning in a hailstorm.  
><em>"Toi, fils de pute sale! Je vais vous battre morts, salaud!"<em> He hissed into Daniel's face.  
>"I don't speak Fr-" Daniel tried to choke out.<br>"_Tais-toi_!" Aaron growled, "You will not speak again!"  
>Daniel had the good sense to shut his mouth.<br>"First, I should inform you that I know Rose was with you in your room this morning," Aaron started.  
>"It's not what you-"<br>"_Je l'ai dit de se taire_!" Aaron roared, "Rose told me what happened but we both know what was on your revolting excuse for a brain."  
>"It wasn't-"<br>"Do not speak!" Aaron pulled back slightly before throwing all his power forward, Daniel hit against the wall thinking his lungs were deflating balloons as he tried to keep in air. His attempts failed as Aaron proceeded to choke his strong fingers around Daniel's swiftly closing wind pipe. "This has gone too far. I have turned too much of a blind eye to your activities but I won't make that mistake again! From this second on you are to stay away from Rose."  
>"But-" Daniel immediately attempted to exhale as his fingers struggled to tear Aaron's strong fingers from his throat.<br>Aaron would have none of it; Daniel didn't even have time to inhale before Aaron threw him down onto the hard stone ground and knelt down, tightening his hands once again around Daniel's throat. Daniel's sea blue eyes stared up in fear seeming to freeze from the pale blue icy ones above him.  
>"There are no 'but's! If you don't keep your loathsome, filthy hands off of my daughter, <em>alors si m'aider<em>, I will tear you apart limb from vile limb! Do you understand me?"  
>Daniel stared into the face of Rose's father, Aaron's eyes were filled with pure anger and no hint of a lie or bluff; Daniel felt his blood freeze as Aaron's grip continued to tighten. His mind coming to the terrifying blunt truth that this man could and, if it came down to it, would kill him. He just had started to shake his head 'yes' when Aaron leaned over his eyes still burned and flashed with pure ferocity like an angry beast about to strike down it's helpless prey.<br>He lifted Daniel's face closer and hissed, "I said: do you understand me, boy?"  
>Daniel had no choice: he quickly nodded and Aaron dropped him unceremoniously on the unforgiving ground.<br>Daniel coughed and choked for oxygen; he flinched as Aaron's foot landed right next to his hand. Aaron's voice still hissed angrily, still as unforgiving as thunder to a frightened child.  
>"Have you even told my daughter the truth about you? Where you come from? Why you're here? Or have you slithered like a snake in blood-stained grass after my innocent, little mouse? She may not know your world but make no mistake: I do, and she will have no part of you or anything else you have to offer, so stay away from her, or you will see just how much of a <em>beast<em> I can be."  
>Aaron turned and stalked out of the room, leaving a winded Daniel shaking on the glossed stone floor. Daniel only could feel his body shake, he groaned as he pushed himself up. He remained there; his mind at a complete blank echoing the images of Aaron's threat and promise of what he would do if he ever talked to Rose again.<p> 


	12. Chapter 12

Daniel was a wreck. Ted had been called away to Paris on personal business and no one else in the castle had spoken a single word to him for the last long, agonizing week. Everything he did, thought, or was assumed to think placed him as if he was a thin straw on the edge of a very sharp, double edged knife. It felt like it was just waiting to slice him in two as if he was an unfortunate rabbit hanging in between a huge, blue-eyed bear and a ravenous pack of castle cleaning wolves.  
>Meals were also silent and often spent alone; every morning he would wake up and find that his breakfast tray had been perfectly placed outside his room with the exact same menu on a large, worn metal tray: warm oatmeal placed in a small bowl at the center, grapes on the left, and a small biscuit with a small cup of tea on the side. The only way the bowl fit in the center was because it was the scope of a large blue teacup.<br>Lunch and dinner were also eaten in silence. It was made all the worse that Rose was in such a close proximity to him yet, with her father presiding over the table, he didn't dare try to even catch her eye. He would spend the whole meal stealing glances of her melancholy face peripherally.  
>Daniel found himself skulking in the back corridors, forgotten corners, and even the spare empty rooms of the castle; a lot of the time the castle's bothersome servants including the overgrown, fat clock and the waxy-eared, bean pole would find him exploring down in the dungeon, up in the towers, in the far empty corners of the ballroom, or even in the spare broom cupboards placed all over the castle floors just to escape the oppressive silence.<br>Every day, Daniel's mind slowly oozed out of reason just like melting marshmallows over a fire of boredom. He had never wanted freedom more in his convoluted, upside down life; and yet Daniel had never felt more inclined to stay in any place for so long. Many times, he would find himself stuck in his huge, featuring mansion his mother would consistently try to trap him inside like a juvenile street punk inside the world's most expensive prison; he would find any methods to escape, just so he could prove to his parents he was never going to be his top-shot, sodding brother.  
>Daniel snipingly stabbed his fork down onto an unfortunate piece of lettuce, his mind returning to the dark chestnut long table. His silver plate was aligned with salad flushed with cut grapes, while the center held a hearty sized steak. Still slowly poking and playing with his food, Daniel's thoughts kept hopping, swooping, and prodding all over his already sore mind which continued to rage war with his pounding heart. He never had had any true friends or any form of loyalty in his life, and yet here in the middle of a damp, dingy castle located in the most nonstandard setting and place he had found Rose. He felt impulsive around her; his breathe would become shallow, unsteady; he would feel his chest fill up with a force to do good, to protect, to spend more and more time with her, and he never wanted this new feeling to end.<br>But deep inside, there was still a sore, throbbing thorn he had felt for years. He tried to bury the agitating barb as he slyly glanced towards Rose; his heart felt like it was being pulled between selfish desires to displease his parents and wanting to care and feel the pains and joys of another person.  
>Daniel's chest still swirled with thundering emotions as he broodingly left the dining room long after his food had chilled and everyone else had left. His feet, having a mind of their own, just wandered down the corridors. His footsteps echoed unaccompanied against the walls, paintings, vases, tables, and all the rest of the medieval relics aligning the walls.<br>Daniel soon found himself at one of the little alcoves behind one of the many tapestries hanging in the hallway near the kitchens. He had started to hide there to eavesdrop on the servants during their annoying gossiping sessions which usually ended, began, or essentially was all about him and his ill behavior. Daniel knew this was the only place where he could hear human voices besides his own voice arguing inside his head. The servants would ramble and natter about many different things besides Daniel. By listening to their ramblings, he had found out more about each of the servant's lives than he ever wanted or needed to know, but at least it wasn't continual silence ringing in his ears.  
>Daniel once again heard all the familiar voices coming from the lit kitchen behind the brown, red trimmed doors; Lumier's voice rang loud and clear along with the always bickering Cogsworth sounding like a primped up yet breaking down clock. And of course, Chip's young, but positively more mature sounding voice like growing wind breezing through the pines. Then he could hear the loud gasping jabber of the fat dresser known as Gisabelle with the squeaky 20's woman's voice of the maid Madeline.<br>Yes, Daniel would simply lie down on the hard floor, feeling the stone's cold touch against his hot back, trying to calm his already raking nerves alone in the dark. His tired mind would only catch one or two words here and there amongst all the prattling voices. He slightly moved onto his side, trying to soften the rough floor. As he laid his head against his arm, his eyes quickly blinked as he heard Rose's name mentioned. He sat up straighter and leaned closer to the fabric to hear what they were saying more clearly. He quickly slowed his breathe so the tapestry wouldn't move and carefully pressed his ears against the fabric hoping no one would notice his shallow, quiet breathing.  
>"Well obviously she's crushed," Madeline was saying, "She had become very close to the boy."<br>"Too close!" Chip demanded, "Too _maudit_ close!"  
>"It's true then?" Gisabelle leaned forward intently, "she was actually in the culprit's room?"<br>"Now let's not jump to any premature conclusion," Mrs. Potts tried to calm everyone down while putting the warm teapot back onto the stove to reheat; her motherly eyes scanned around everyone trying to find anyway to soften the brewing conversation. But soon her eyes went back to the shining silver teapot speedily coming to a steaming squeal before her son expounded his own thoughts, making the conversation boil along with the steaming tea.  
>"<em>Mère<em>," Chip interjected, "there is nothing premature about this!"  
>"I do believe the boy has a point," Cogsworth said, "I overheard the master informing Belle about the situation, and I must say that it is distressing." Cogsworth took a sip of his tea and looked around to a group's set of expectant faces, clearly showing none of them had also heard the master's news; all of the servants were too busy urging for Cogsworth to continue what he heard to notice the firelight flicking in Daniel's eyes as he dared peek out a bit farther, so he could hear better.<br>"Well?" Chip persisted.  
>"'Well?'" Cogsworth questioned.<br>Chip's hand slightly raised as if threatening to smack Cogsworth's teacup straight up into his perfect curled mustache before tediously rolling his eyes as Cogsworth annoyingly took another quick slurping sip, "Well what did he say, you great, dusty ticker!" Lumier sprang out unable to contain himself any longer.  
>"I do not believe I should divulge the secret conversations between the master and his wife." Cogsworth sniffed.<br>Chip burst out, "Oh it's too late for that! Now tell us!"  
>"Oh very well," Cogsworth sighed though it was obvious he was simply waiting for the push to divulge his juicy gossip, "I was cleaning a most troublesome plain of dust on top of the twelve century black top table in the upper West Wing, when I heard the master speak that accursed boy's name. Since his voice was slightly heated, I couldn't help overhearing-"<br>"_Connerie_," Lumier input causing Cogsworth to send him an extremely undignified look.  
>"Anyways," He continued, "As I was saying before being so rudely interrupted."<br>"Get on with it!" Gisabelle said.  
>"Very well, the master started by informing Belle of how he found Rose's gold hair clip on Daniel's bedside table. He said that the room was a mess. Apparently, Daniel's breakfast tray was spilt on the ground and worse yet," he paused, "the bed was… shall we say…. Undone."<br>"You don't think she possibly would have…" Madeline let her statement hang in the thickening air.  
>"No, absolutely not!" Chip stood up his face slightly growing red, Mrs. Potts blinked as her son began to pace the floor. "More likely he tried to-to- well you know, and she rejected him."<br>Gisabelle took the moment to interject, "than why would she still be with the _coquina_?"  
>All of them paused as a faint moan pricked their ears; Daniel whooshed back into the alcove praying no one had seen him. For what seemed like minutes there was silence, Daniel's hand started to pulse from being crushed against the wall and his back; then as the voices slowly spoke again he bit down on his tongue swallowing down the pain, he resumed his ear against the rugged tapestry to hear Chip's shouting voice.<br>"Oh let's be serious," Chip started ranting, "Rose isn't exactly the least naive person we know, and that scum is definitely persuasive enough to convince her he was being far more innocent than his demented little brain could muster. She would naturally have just taken him for his word. I'd be willing to bet he's just biding his time to try again!"  
>There was a very pregnant pause after Chip finished his loud speech; Daniel delicately pulled back the very edge of the tapestry to see if something bad had taken place, his heart was starting to brim with guilt for his friendship with Rose. He hadn't meant for any of this to happen, for Rose to end up entirely alone in this place mocked and untrusted by her other friends here. He started to move away but instantly froze as Madeline spoke up, "Surely Rose wouldn't be so <em>sot<em> as to believe anything he would say?"  
>Lumier took this moment to speak, "I am afraid to say that Chip is right in his assessment of our young mistress. She is unprepared for the ways of the world."<br>Mrs. Potts couldn't stand it any longer, "Rose is not so foolish as to believe any of his trickery."  
>"Mamam," Chip interjected, "Rose has already been drawn into his web! She has completely lost all rationality towards that <em>bâtard<em>! Just look at how close he got to completely destroying her!"  
>"Once again, the boy has a point," Gisabelle spoke up, "I myself have had a small amount of dealings with such cads, and I must say Rose has foolishly allowed herself to be deceived by his trickery."<br>Everyone looked at Gisabelle and silently nodded. More would have been said but right at the moment the grandfather clock in the corner let out three chimes.  
>"I do believe we have allowed ourselves to speak for too long," Cogsworth sniffed, "It is time for the master's tea."<br>"Of course," Mrs. Potts said immediately busied herself with the preparations.  
>"We all should be getting about our business," Lumier said and they all slowly stood to leave. Daniel sat in silence as he heard each of them exit the kitchen. He peaked out around the edge of the tapestry to make sure the coast was clear. His chest only froze as the tapestry across from him started to move.<br>He watched silently as a thin figure slipped effortlessly from a high-placed niche. he heard quiet sobs as the figure's padded feet touched the glossed floor. He felt his heart tear like slightly shredded paper as Rose's face turned into the shedding light of the setting sun. Her face was lit like a shimmering angel as the last stretches of golden rays gently touched her cream face turning her burnt amber eyes to a brilliant dark gold.  
>Daniel's heart started to flutter through thin air, but the exuberant feeling crashed into countless splinters as he stared at her tear-stained face created by all the soundless tears she had made from behind the other tapestry. Daniel's eyes grew wide. His throat tightened at the realization that he hadn't been the only one listening in on the servants.<br>Daniel felt his heart run like a thundering waterfall; his legs began to subconsciously pull out from the shadows in order to comfort Rose. He wanted more than anything to wipe away her tears and soften the pain from the harsh words spoken in the other room.  
>His muscles strained to take the first giant step. His heart hammered as he stepped closer with his hands shaking at his sides. But before he could even attempt to stop himself, Rose let a short sob escape her cherry colored lips, before running down the darkening antechamber tears still streaming down her creamy flushed cheeks.<br>Daniel ran out from behind the tapestry and watched her run off down the corridor, an overwhelming need to erase her pain burning through his veins. He barely managed to restrain himself as he remembered the way Aaron had choked him; he could see the man's eyes burning with rage like icy, deadly spheres. He quietly rubbed his neck, still feeling the slight bruising sting at his simplest touch.  
>What could he do? He wanted to help Rose, help her understand that she wasn't the only one completely alone in this god-forbidden prison. He hadn't meant for anything to turn around and bite him in the ass, but, as always, his plans and wants continued to be like a stalking wolf wounding its prey before closing in on the final lunge. His mind made the most silent <strong>snapping <strong>noise, he couldn't, no… he wouldn't believe that after these long, painful sodding months of doing nothing besides gaining a painful education of how much his parents wanted to finally be rid of him by placing him in the middle of a stony nut house. Then actually finding a friend in his banishment of solitude and abandonment, to only have her yanked away from him from all sides which, once again left him completely stranded and alone like a disease ridden isle.  
>He turned in frustration and punched the wooden door. His knuckles made slight cracking noises as they slammed into the fragile wood. It was a good thing no one else was close enough to hear him scream and say a few censored words before pulling back his wringing hand.<br>"Damnit!" He exclaimed loudly and waved his hand around in the air. Blood drops made silent splashes onto the sleek floor. Daniel cursed again; reaching for the damp cloth that Mrs. Potts had used to lift up the steaming teapots on the crumb topped counter. He turned towards the window to see the two faintest lights creeping along the darkening road. The lights seemed to inch their way towards the castle as if trying to escape the swallowing grasp of the woods behind them. Daniel threw the rag into the dirty basket by the stove and wrapped his aching hand in his shirt; slowly following the melancholy silence that marked the path Rose had taken down the dark corridor.  
>He walked sulkily down the hallways, walking like he was back inside the deep, dark echoing arched caves across the vomit colored hills and mountains of Ireland with his snobbish school group from the boy's academy of perfectly-trained, moronic, robot idiots. He didn't even care to hear the echoing creak of the castle's main door open three floors beneath him; he could only sigh at the thought of Ted's expressionless eyes behind his round silver spectacles just staring into nothing but blank abyss.<br>In a few minutes, Daniel found himself back at his bedroom; he entered through his large doors, mumbling about how big a scolding he would receive from his mute, bug eyed nanny for his bleeding knuckles. Sulkingly, he made his way to the opposite side of his perfectly trimmed, folded bed. He chuckled to himself when he saw the white porcelain bowl, full of clear water the maid's still brought in everyday even though his side-table was overcrowded with all his so-called friend's letters that where now soggy, paper boats; he continued to smile knowing full well that the bowl had been indeed refilled with clear cool water where he was supposed to wash his face and hands but as usual he would maintain his assiduous impulse to constantly ignore the general rules and possibly make even more soggy, paper messes.  
>Daniel breathed in the dank air for a moment before his smile disappeared as his temper started brewing again. The maids had once again blatantly ignored his wishes for open windows. In fact, they would close them every time he left them open. Tenderly cradling his hand before placing it against his abdomen, he reached his free hand to the high placed two nut silver locks which were placed along the edged, grain seal of the windows like to bobbed pins on thick fabric. His forefinger delicately grabbed the top of the small, sliding lever; but Daniel's mind wandered to other thoughts as his thumb squeezed up the bottom of the second lever.<p>

"_What am I going to do? I am so bloody sick and tired of everyone ruining my life!"_ The small lever clicked, sending the bar sliding down the golden tube, _"Every sodding person my whole bloody life has expected me to do things their way. My parent's, my supposed friends, hell, even my brother wouldn't leave me alone! Now mister 'I'm an over-protective, sodding psychopath' is going to rip me apart if I go anywhere near…" _  
>The wooden panels along the crevassed edge rubbed against the glass, Daniel's thoughts only flamed higher; his fingers touched the sun-warmed glass, the slightest pressure began to travel from his hand making the window faintly creak, <em>"what do I do? How did this all happen?"<br>_Cool air softly blew onto his face and cheeks as he pushed the window out into the warm air, tiny hands seemed to grasp the hanging deep blue curtains. The hands stretched and flowed pouring light, golden ink onto every surface of the room. Daniel turned to see a recently placed vase of white roses on the far right desk which rested along the south wall. The light seemed to cause the petals to catch fire turning them from snowy white to a glimmering yellow, and he couldn't miss the irony or dodge the sharp, throbbing pain he felt in his heart at the sight.  
>Daniel couldn't stand it; he had never felt so frustrated in his whole life. He could only feel the rage burning in his hand as he walked, grabbed, and threw the vase across his room and into the bathroom where it crashed onto the floor white polished floor; broken glass, water, and crumpled flowers flew everywhere.<br>He sat on his bed a minute and looked out at the blue sky, his ears pricked as a small bird landed on his balcony; a beautiful song thrush. It sat for a moment, preening its feathers before flying off towards deep grey mountains to the north.  
>A slight knock came from the door, Daniel turned to see his spectacle-eyed nurse carrying a small towel and some bandage wrapping. He scoffed as Ted quietly shut the door behind him, snidely sniffing before kneeling in front of pounding knuckle and set in right to work.<br>"So…." Daniel coughed through his teeth, "did the warden send u? Or the prison guards?"  
>"sir, I walked by just a moment ago and saw your injury; I simply went away to get your bandage needs along with the magazines you requested, nothing more."<br>"Oh right, the magazines. Anything about me in there?"

"Of course, Sir. Isn't there always?" Ted said without blinking as he wiped the warm rag across Daniel's knuckles.  
>"Ow! Bloody Hell!" Daniel exclaimed and tore his hand from Ted's grip.<br>"My apologies, Sir," Ted said and took back the protesting appendage.  
>Daniel rolled his eyes and stared out his window, when a thought struck him. "What day is it?" he asked Ted.<br>"Today is the twenty-third of September, Sir. May I inquire as to why you wish to know?"  
>Daniel looked at Ted, "The twenty-third of September? That means I've been here over six bloody months!"<br>"Yes, Sir, that is accurate." Ted said.  
>"You'd think my no-good parents would have brushed everything under the rug by now."<br>"I do believe the (cough) investigation has been affectively canceled."  
>"Then why am I still in this shithole?" Daniel exclaimed loud enough to scare the bird off his balcony.<br>"I did inquire on your behalf to your brother while I was in Paris, and he said your parents believe you have yet to learn your lesson, Sir."  
>"Well they should just-" Daniel cut himself off, "Wait, what is Eric doing in Paris? Shouldn't he be running something in London for my father?"<br>"He is here on business, Sir. Fashion week begins in two days, and your family has influence over a number of the designers, lest you forget." Ted said as he finished wiping up the last bit of blood off Daniel's hand and stood to leave.  
>Daniel flopped back onto the bed, "oh perfect! Eric gets to go and party with a bunch of slutty models, and I'm stuck here in Hell! I bet Paris is crawling with hot-stripper babes!"<br>"I'm sure you're right, sir, I apologize that you are unable to enjoy it." Ted finished and walked out of the room, quietly closing the door behind him.  
>"Yea, no joke." Daniel whined.<br>Daniel stretched his pulsing fingers. He cursed softly under his breath as he grabbed the closest magazine sitting near the rim of his bed. Quickly smiling at the red strapped, bikini bathing super models on the front of the month's issue of BAZAAR, before tossing it behind him to switch to the black, upcoming fashion week magazine. He sighed looking through the reds, greys, whites, and other interesting styles, including a woman that was dressed like a female Neo except with the worst, widest, sun-specs he had ever seen, and her hair shot straight up like a premature rock star pretending to be a vampire. Her pale yellow hair drooping like the quills on a petrified porcupine.  
>He continued to turn the pages crossing what looked like a Japanese emo-chick that had a terrible, swollen, puffed up, full-headed Mohawk. She was followed by a model with a striped, blue and white lined, top jacket for some kind of oriental charter school uniform with a black lined knee skirt; inexcusably ending with little high heeled ebony leathered shoes with a fuzzy zebra striped tops.<br>Daniel felt a short shiver run up his neck when he looked down to see the model's small white printed name before quickly rubbing his temples as he turned the page trying to get the _male_ model's name out of his mind. He mindlessly flipped through the rest of the pages before uninterestingly sighing as his head fell onto yet another magazine showing bold yellow letters sponsoring the next art tour at the _**Musée Rodin**_.  
>Daniel's mind felt duller then Joe's tasteless sex jokes during a fully hammered evening at the Chinawhite, followed along with the worst accompanied high-pitched blondie from a 1940's horror show. He stared at the white, stitched vines trying to collect any form of concentration; his fingers drummed along the bedside rhythmically matching one of Rose's hummed songs echoing through his cranium. His thoughts painted and brushed Rose's smile, her excitement from his stories of the outside world. Her face would light up and stars would dance in her eyes giving the perfect reflection of all her dreams and wants of going to see a world beyond this cold prison, to go see the people and the art and…<p>

Suddenly, he sat up straight, an idea forming in his mind. His eyes widened as he glanced out the window, the deep purple mountains swelling with yellow, fiery light from the setting sun. He smiled as the small, brown spotted song thrush finally returned to its favorite perch next to a white, swooning angel hanging near the drying lianas climbing up towards the second high tower. He quickly ran over to his desk and grabbed a piece of paper from the untouched stationary Ted had so carefully arranged for him and started to write in his most legible handwriting:

'_Hey Rose,_

_First off, I have to say I'm sorry for getting you in trouble, and for everything else, too. I didn't mean for any of it to happen. I know your friends don't like me and, yes, I know I'm the arse who made it that way. I never wanted you to have any criticism from anyone, which is also my fault, so sorry about that, too._

_Anyways, I really have wanted to talk to you in person, without your dad killing me, hopefully. If you want to come, I'll be waiting in the Northeast Tower Cell at midnight. I think it will be the least detectable time and place. I'll be waiting there every night this week._

_Secretly hoping,_

_Daniel_

_P.S. You should probably stick pillows under your blankets to make it seem like you're still asleep. (Sadly I do have experience in sneaking about where I shouldn't)_

_P.P.S. Don't you even bother pretending to be surprised.'_


End file.
